The City provides commercial collection services using front-end loading trucks and dumpsters picked up on a schedule agreed to by the customer and City. Customers are charged an amount determined by the cubic yard size of the dumpster used, and the number of times per week it is serviced.

Residential collection is provided using polycarts that citizens take to the curbside for once per week service. The cost for this service remains at $12.75 per month as it has for many years, which is lower than similar service by private companies in the unincorporated areas of Bulloch County .

Yard waste and white goods are collected curbside throughout the City using knuckleboom loaders and trailers following a route system. This service is included in the residential fee noted above.

Solid Waste is disposed of in the Lakeview Road Transfer Station. Consequently, the City entered into a contract with Williams Brothers Trucking Company, Inc. to grind yard waste about quarterly, and haul it away for use elsewhere. Some is left for those citizens wishing to use it for mulch. The cost per ton for normal refuse is $30.00 at the Transfer Station, but the grindable material is only charged $12.00 per ton. Obviously, the new contracted grinding is reducing our disposal costs.

A summary of the six-year Capital Improvements Program financed in the Solid Waste Collection Fund is included at the end of this section. The complete Capital Improvements Program is a separate document, and contains more detailed information on each project.

This fund accounts for the receipts and disbursements to operate the jointly owned City and County transfer station and inert landfill on Lakeview Road . It also covers the post-closure costs of the Lakeview Road Landfill. Also included are the costs to transport and dispose of the solid waste at the Wayne County Solid Waste Authority (WCSWA) Landfilll near Jesup. Transportation is provided by contract with a local trucking company. Disposal is provided by long-term contract with the WCSWA. The disposal agreement was re-negotiated in 2002, resulting in a decrease in the tipping fees to $19.00 per ton. An inflationary index is included. Funding for the Keep Bulloch Beautiful program also comes from this fund.

This fund is financed by the tipping fees that users of the transfer station pay to dispose of solid waste. Brush, leaves and other grindable material is disposed of using a private mulching contractor at $9.75 per ton. The tipping fee for this material is $12.00 per ton. The tipping fee for other waste is $30.00 per ton, which barely covers the cost of transportation at $10.10 and disposal at $19.00 per ton. In addition, there is the cost of personnel and equipment to weigh the waste and operate the transfer station and the methane extraction system as part of the post-closure of the Lakeview Landfill.

Therefore, SPLOST funds are transferred into this fund to pay the post-closure costs, and pay part of the disposal fees at the WCSWA Landfill. Without these SPLOST funds, this fund would either have to be subsidized by property taxes, or have higher tipping fees. If those fees become too high, they could result in illegal dumping by some, which would create public health and aesthetics problems for the community.

The operation of the transfer station and inert landfill, the maintenance of the closed Lakeview Landfill and the operation of the attendant methane gas extraction system are under the direction of the Public Works Director. The City Engineer is responsible for all post-closure regulatory compliance issues, working with the City's engineering consultant to keep the closed landfill in full compliance with US Environmental Protection Agency and Georgia Environmental Protection Division rules and regulations.

A summary of the six-year Capital Improvements Program financed in the Solid Waste Disposal Fund is included at the end of this section. The complete Capital Improvements Program is a separate document, and contains more detailed information on each project.

The Parks Division is responsible for maintaining the City's two cemeteries. Cemetery lot sales are handled by the City Engineer's Office. This division also plants and maintains flowers and shrubbery in traffic islands and other public locations throughout the City, including Triangle Park and City Hall. Its operating budget is in the General Fund and capital projects are in the CIP Fund.

The Fleet Management operation has been set up as a true internal service fund, with all costs, including depreciation, charged to the using department through labor, parts, and overhead charges just like a commercial garage. This reflects the true cost to each fund, department, and division.

Each user will pay a 20% mark-up on parts, and $55.00 per hour, or $13.75 per quarter hour, for all mechanic work. Computerized records of all maintenance on each piece of equipment will continue to be maintained, and a preventive maintenance schedule will be continued. This has resulted in more dependable vehicle service and prolonged usage. This operation will continue under the supervision of the Public Works Director.

This operation was poorly funded in the past, and the City needs to continue to finance the necessary equipment to bring this operation to a higher level. That is being achieved through recent purchases of the Koni mobile equipment lift system, replacement service vehicle, a replacement forklift, computerized vehicle diagnostics and an oil transfer system. Continuation of this kind of funding over the next several years should result in a much better equipped garage, which should reduce the amount of work contracted out for lack of the appropriate equipment.

summary of the six-year Capital Improvements Program financed in the Fleet Management Fund is included at the end of this section. The complete Capital Improvements Program is a separate document, and contains more detailed information on each project.