Unalaska, AK – The city council decided to approve the landfill rate increase. In accordance with a rate study, the city will increase rates for commercial users 11.5 percent per year for the next three years. Residential users will only see a $5 monthly increase. This will help keep the landfill afloat; it is currently being subsidized with $1.1 million per year from the general fund. The council has been discussing the increase for a number of months. However, before it passed the second reading, council member Dick Peck suggested a substantial change. He wanted to increase rates for commercial users and not increase the rates for residential users. Peck says that residential users pay 2.5 times more per ton for refuse than commercial users and he wanted to balance that.

Community member Don Graves spoke against the amendment saying that gradual increases made sense but springing a last minute, drastic amendment on the community during the second reading was not fair.

City staff said Peck's suggestions would have to be reviewed before they could be implemented, meaning the rate increase process would need to start over. Other council members said they would prefer to stick with the recommendations from the study and from staff. The motion was withdrawn and the rate increase passed 6 to 0 as it was initially introduced.

Another action aimed at helping the landfill was a $50 per year vehicle registration fee to help pay for junk car removal from the island. Council member Roger Rowland noted that the ordinance did not specify if the fee would also apply to motorcycles or other small registered vehicles. The ordinance also noted an annual fee, but vehicles are only registered every two years. Rowland wondered if it should be amended to say $100 every two years. The ordinance was tabled until city staff found the answers.

The council also voted to give the school system the requested amount of $3.7 million toward their next year's budget.

This story has been changed since its initial posting.