Brisbane households slugged with $50 green waste bin fee – even if they don't want one
Households in a major city are set to be slugged with an extra $50 waste levy as the council announces a major rollout as part of its annual budget to help skirt the state government's 'bin tax'.
From August, Brisbane City Council will introduce the Universal Waste Charge, an opt-out green waste program for about 170,000 stand-alone households that will replace the Waste Utility Charge and scrap existing surcharges.
Instead, residents will be charged a flat annual universal waste fee of $512.96 – whether they use the new green waste bin or not.
This is an increase of about $50 per year, with the rollout expected to take place between August and December.
Residents who already paid for a green waste bin will not have to cop the fee.
However, those who do not want the bin will still have to pay the extra fee.
'Other households will pay an extra $49.52 a year, with $33 of this increase related to the waste levy introduced by the former Labor state government,' a council statement read.
Brisbane Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner said the change was part of a 'large-scale tax-avoidance scheme' that would help the council dodge the state government's 'bin tax'.
He said the introduction of the green bins would help reduce strain on growing landfills.
'One of the things this does is it helps us avoid the state government's bin tax,' he said per The Brisbane Times.
'Every year there's a tax that increases on waste going to landfill.
'At the moment, for example, our green waste recycling program saves about $1.6m a year in state government taxes.
'We're running a large-scale tax avoidance scheme because I don't want anyone to have to pay the state government's bin tax.'
The state government levy was introduced in 2019 and charges the council about $115 per tonne of waste in the landfill. It is expected to increase by $10 every year until 2028.
Mr Schrinner argued the recently announced annual fee would help save between $2m and $3m within the first year of the scheme.
In the span of five years, Brisbane City Council estimates it will save approximately $32m.
'Every house will get a green bin, and that will be part of the business-as-usual service,' he said per The Brisbane Times.
'The reason we're doing that is because of the state government's bin tax … that effectively forces ever-increasing costs onto councils.'
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