REQUEST FOR CITY COUNCIL ACTION
SUBMITTED TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council Members
SUBMITTED BY: Travis Hopkins, City Manager
VIA: Chau Vu, Director of Public Works
PREPARED BY: Debra Jubinsky, Senior Management Analyst
Subject:
title
Approve Second Amendment authorizing a one-year extension to the Waste Disposal Agreement between the County of Orange and the City of Huntington Beach extending the term to June 30, 2026
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Statement of Issue:
The City of Huntington Beach’s access to the Orange County landfills is governed by a Waste Disposal Agreement (WDA). Through the WDA, all cities and special districts in Orange County agreed to exclusively dispose of their municipal solid waste at the County’s landfills in exchange for low and stable disposal rates. The current WDA was entered into in 2009 and amended in 2016 to extend the term through June 30, 2025. Huntington Beach and the other County jurisdictions are currently negotiating a successor agreement via the Orange County City Manager Association, but additional time is needed to finalize mutually acceptable terms and disposal fees. The proposed Second Amendment extends the current WDA by one year to ensure access to the County landfills at the existing rate structure and to allow for continued negotiations of a successor agreement. The implementation of the Second Amendment is contingent upon 100% approval by all County cities and sanitation districts.
Financial Impact:
There is no financial impact to the City. Extending the term of the WDA from June 30, 2025 to June 30, 2026 preserves the current rate structure and annual CPI escalation formula of the current WDA that is already included in the City’s FY 25-26 proposed budget in the Refuse Enterprise Fund No. 504.
Recommended Action:
recommendation
Approve and authorize the Mayor and City Clerk to execute the “Second Amendment To Waste Disposal Agreement Between the County of Orange, California and the City of Huntington Beach.”
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Alternative Action(s):
Do not approve the recommended action and direct staff on how to proceed.
Analysis:
The current Waste Disposal Agreement (WDA) between the County of Orange and all Orange County cities and sanitary districts expires on June 30, 2025. In January 2022, Orange County Waste & Recycling (OCWR) notified cities of its intent to renew the WDA and to include new terms to reflect compliance under California’s Senate Bill 1383 and future legislation. SB 1383 is the legislation that requires local governments to compost organic waste material like food scraps and landscape cuttings and to keep this material out of landfills. The County requested a written notice of interest in a renewal agreement which our interim City Manager submitted in a letter dated May 23, 2022 (Attachment 3). On November 7, 2024, OCWR presented its proposed successor agreement at an Orange County City Manager’s summit.
The County titled its proposed successor agreement the Waste Infrastructure System Enhancement (WISE) agreement. As proposed, the WISE agreement includes an increase to the landfill disposal rate from $42.65 to $82 per ton--a 92.3% increase. Additional new terms in the WISE agreement include:
• A program to rebate cities for certain transportation costs for procuring compost created at the OCWR Greenery compost facilities.
• Allocating disposal revenue to capital expenditures for organics recycling infrastructure at County landfill sites.
The Orange County City Manager Association (OCCMA) formed a committee in December 2024 to negotiate a successor agreement to the WDA and requested an extension of the current WDA to allow time for such negotiations. The extension period will allow stakeholders to conduct due diligence on a successor agreement to the WDA as well as evaluate costs, infrastructure plans, and future fee adjustments.
OCWR has agreed to the OCCMA committee’s requested extension in the proposed Second Amendment, which extends the WDA term one year to June 30, 2026 and preserves the current disposal rates and annual CPI rate escalation formula. If the OCCMA committee and OCWR are unable to reach mutually agreeable terms for a WISE agreement by September 30, 2025, OCCMA will provide monthly updates to all cities and sanitary districts beginning in October 2025.
County adoption of the Second Amendment is contingent upon 100% approval by all cities and sanitary districts. Staff recommends that the City Council approve the Second Amendment to the Waste Disposal Agreement to ensure continued access to the local landfills and stable disposal rates while we collaborate with fellow jurisdictions toward a mutually acceptable successor landfill agreement.
Environmental Status:
This action is covered by the General Rule that the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) applies only to projects that have the potential for causing a significant effect on the environment (Section 15061.b.3 of the State CEQA Guidelines). It can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that this activity will have a significant effect on the environment. Therefore, this activity is not subject to CEQA.
Strategic Plan Goal:
Non Applicable - Administrative Item
Attachment(s):
1. Second Amendment To Waste Disposal Agreement Between The County of Orange, California and the City Of Huntington Beach
2. Waste Disposal Agreement Between County of Orange, California and City Of Huntington Beach with First Amendment
3. Letter of Intent to Renew dated May 23, 2022
4. PowerPoint Presentation