Outsourcing Solid Waste Collection

Outsourcing Solid Waste Collection

Outsourcing Solid Waste Collection Background Smaller town outside of major metropolitan area 31,000 people 9,000 houses 150 Small business Public Works has 33 people and $6M budget. Roughly $1.6M of that is for solid waste Smaller town outside of major metropolitan area 31,000 people 9,000 houses 150 Small business Public Works has 33 people and $6M budget. Roughly $1.6M of that is for solid waste Had successfully contracted with Republic for 20 years on a 5-year renewal basis Happy with service Calls were overwhelming Town staff Wanted to be good fiscal stewards of the public’s money 100,000 contacts per month with less than 10 complaints

Outsourcing Solid Waste Collection Process What was important? Service Contractor had to take load off of staff Cost Intangibles Who were the Stakeholders? Citizens Elected officials Environmental Advisory Committee Staff Process Request for Qualifications (RFQ) Shortlist for Request for Proposal (RFP)- task or performance based Presentations for top candidates Negotiation One of the largest call generators to a municipality is solid waste Intangibles- partnership Performance-based RFP

Outsourcing Solid Waste Collection RFP Process Sent out RFQ to 20 vendors Sent RFP to top four Weekly pick up of trash, yard waste and bulky items (call-in) Bi-weekly pick up of recyclables Call center to receive customer calls Level of service Cost breakdown Asked top two for presentations to committee Sent out RFQ to 20 vendors Sent out RFQ to 20 vendors Sent RFP to top four Weekly pick up of trash, yard waste and bulky items (call-in) Bi-weekly pick up of recyclables Call center to receive customer calls Level of service Cost breakdown Sent out RFQ to 20 vendors Sent RFP to top four Weekly pick up of trash, yard waste and bulky items (call-in) Bi-weekly pick up of recyclables Call center to receive customer calls Level of service Cost breakdown Asked top two for presentations to committee Based on proposals and presentation, brought recommendation to Board RFQ sent out a year before contract was up Only received 4 responses (did receive a call a year later from someone who hadn’t responded asking whether we were interested in changing providers)

Outsourcing Solid Waste Collection Results What was important? Service Contractor had to take load off of staff Cost Intangibles Service has remained at a high level although we have had some issues. Contractor has been very responsive to fixing most of them Has taken a large load off of staff although we are still having issues with customers being given the wrong information Cost was decreased roughly $300k per year Still a good partnership with Republic

Pros and Cons of Outsourcing Outsourcing Solid Waste Collection Pros and Cons of Outsourcing Pros Don’t have to have additional staff Don’t need equipment and associated maintenance Don’t have to directly handle issues (hydraulic leak cleanups, customer service, employee issues) Pros Don’t have to have additional staff Don’t need equipment and associated maintenance Don’t have to directly handle issues (hydraulic leak cleanups, customer service, employee issues) Cons Aren’t as intimate with the daily operations. Not the first to hear about issues. Only hear once it becomes a major problem Residents sometimes given incorrect information Sometimes poor communication Don’t have direct control of drivers Don’t have the profit center