Los Angeles City Council approves plan to double trash fees

Last week, the Los Angeles City Council unanimously approved a plan submitted by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa to gradually raise residential trash fees to fund a major expansion of the Los Angeles Police Department. According to a report in the Los Angeles Times, monthly collection rates for homeowners would rise from $11 now to $18 later this year, $22 in the next fiscal year, $26 the next and finally $28 four years from now. While previous attempts to raise collection rates were considered too politically unpopular to succeed, sources quoted in the article say Villaraigosa’s influence and the promise of a beefed-up LAPD helped the measure pass.