9.50.040 Definitions
Except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning, or where a term is defined below, definitions contained within ORS 459.005 at the time of adoption or as further amended in the future, and regulations promulgated under state law, are applicable to this chapter.
Administrative Operations Standards and Rules mean all standards and rules approved by resolution of Council defining specific operating rules and procedures that support and ensure compliance with this chapter.
Affiliated Company means any company which shares expenses and/or revenues with the franchisee with respect to the services under the franchise and is: (1) the parent company (corporation, partnership or limited liability company) of franchisee; or (2) any subsidiary of such parent company; or (3) any company of which thirty percent (30%) or more of the common stock or control is owned or controlled by franchisee or franchisee’s shareholders; examples of such shared costs include, but are not limited to: labor, equipment, vehicles, insurance, or administrative costs.
Allowable Expenses mean those expenses incurred by franchisee in the performance of this franchise that are allowed by the City as reimbursable by the ratepayer as enumerated below. Allowable expenses are allowable only to the extent that such expenses are known and measurable, calculated according to generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) on an accrual basis, and comply with the cost allocation methodology contained within this chapter to the franchisee’s operations within the City, do not exceed the fair market value of comparable goods or services, and are commercially reasonable and prudently incurred by the franchisee solely in the course of performing its obligations under the franchise. Allowable expenses shall include but not be limited to the following:
1. The costs of complying with all laws, regulations or orders applicable to the obligations of franchisees under federal, state or local law, including this chapter, as well as costs for financial reporting, accounting and regulatory processes associated with or required by this franchise or under law, as now or hereafter amended;
2. Disposal costs;
3. Labor costs, including operational and supervisory labor, payroll taxes, workers’ compensation, and benefits, as well as third party transportation costs;
4. Vehicle and equipment expenses, including vehicle registration fees, motor fuel, oil, tires, rental charges and/or operating lease payments and repairs and maintenance;
5. Expenses of maintaining other capital assets, including rental charges and/or operating lease payments and repair and maintenance, to include container maintenance and repair costs;
6. Performance bonds and insurance in at least the amounts and coverages required by the City;
7. All administrative and management costs and expenses reasonably allocated for the services required under this franchise, including, but not limited to, compensation, management fees, and benefits for officers and employees, payroll taxes, data processing, billing, equipment or facility rental or lease costs, supplies, finance and accounting, administration, human resource and labor management, rate analysis, and regulatory compliance;
8. Utilities;
9. Training, worker safety and employee development expenses;
10. Promotion and public education costs;
11. Depreciation and amortization of capital assets, including any necessary standby or backup equipment used on a regular and ongoing basis in the provision of services under this franchise over the standardized economic useful lives of the various assets;
12. Outside professional fees and costs, limited to two (2) percentage points of revenue, unless an extraordinary circumstance exists;
13. Interest expense, other than interest paid with respect to route or franchise acquisition, that is not in excess of market rates ordinarily charged for the various types of financing required for purchases or leases;
14. All surcharges, taxes or fees, other than state or federal income taxes or franchise fees, which are imposed upon the franchisee or levied by federal, state or local government in connection with franchisee’s provision of collection services under this franchise;
15. Direct write-off charges for bad debts; and
16. Franchise fees assessed by the City.
Allowable expenses as defined above shall be reasonable if they are comparable with the expenses incurred by similarly situated solid waste and recycling collection companies on the west coast of the United States.
Automated Collection System means a type of collection system that utilizes standardized roll carts and mechanically assisted collection equipment designed to minimize direct human handling of customer waste set out for collection.
Bulky Wastes mean large items of solid waste such as appliances, furniture, large auto parts, trees, branches greater than four (4) inches in diameter and thirty-six (36) inches in length, stumps and other oversized wastes whose large size precludes or complicates their handling by normal collection, processing or disposal methods.
City means the existing City limits and future annexations of the City of Ashland, Oregon.
City Council or Council means the City Council of the City of Ashland.
Commercial means stores; offices, including manufacturing and industrial offices; restaurants; warehouses; schools; colleges, universities; hospitals; and other nonmanufacturing entities; manufacturing entities, but not including multifamily or residential condominium complexes.
Container means a receptacle used to store solid waste or recyclable materials that is designed for on-site unloading into a closed-bodied collection vehicle in which the contents of the receptacle are mixed with the contents of other similar receptacles.
Construction and Demolition Debris means used or discarded construction materials removed from a premises during construction, demolition or renovation of a structure.
Cost Allocation. The following allocation methodology shall be used to determine expenses attributable to services rendered for City of Ashland solid waste management services franchise operations:
1. Residential and Commercial Labor Hours. The franchisee will perform two (2) annual surveys to estimate the time spent in each jurisdiction by residential and commercial route. Total annual hours will be estimated by jurisdiction for residential and commercial routes based on the two (2) annual surveys. The annual total hours will be used to allocate labor and benefits, fuel, oil, maintenance, vehicle and container leases, vehicle licenses, and route costs by jurisdiction for residential and commercial services.
2. Debris Box Labor Hours. The franchisee will estimate the average time spent per load by jurisdiction. This average will be applied to the actual annual load count by jurisdiction to calculate an annual total for each jurisdiction. The annual total hours will be used to allocate labor and benefits, fuel, oil, maintenance, vehicle and debris box leases, vehicle licenses, and route costs by jurisdiction for debris box.
3. Yardage. Yardage by jurisdiction will be estimated by subscribed volumes for residential and commercial services and by box size for debris box service. This yardage will be used to allocate disposal costs by jurisdiction.
4. Residential and Commercial Weekly Lifts. The franchisee will use two (2) surveys to estimate the number of weekly services by jurisdiction. This measure will be used to allocate all other costs by jurisdiction.
5. Direct Cost. Franchise fees and other costs directly related to a specific jurisdiction will be applied to the appropriate jurisdiction.
Curbside/Roadside means a location within three (3) feet of public right-of-way. This does not allow the garbage or recycling receptacle to be placed on the inside of a fence or enclosure even if the receptacle is within three (3) feet of said road or roads. For residences on flag lots, private roads or driveways, curbside/roadside shall be the point where the private road or driveway intersects a City road, public access road, state road or federal road.
Customer means individuals, groups, businesses, corporations or other recognized entity receiving solid waste management services from the franchisee within the City of Ashland.
Customer Classification means list and definition of the different groupings utilized for rate making; i.e., residential, commercial, municipal, etc.
Depot means a facility for transferring containerized solid waste, recyclable materials or yard debris from one (1) mode of transportation to another. The term also refers to a place for receiving source-separated recyclable materials.
Disabled Customer means a subscription customer in which all adult household members possess a DMV-issued handicapped parking sticker/placard.
Disposal Site means land and facilities used for the disposal, handling or transfer of, or resource recovery from solid wastes, including but not limited to dumps, landfills, sludge lagoons, sludge treatment facilities, disposal sites for septic tank pumping or cesspool cleaning service, transfer stations, resource recovery facilities, incinerators for solid waste delivered by the public or by a solid waste collection service, composting plants and land and facilities previously used for solid waste disposal at a land disposal site. Disposal site does not include the following: a facility authorized by a permit issued under ORS 466.005 to 466.385 to store, treat or dispose of both hazardous waste and solid waste; a facility subject to permit requirements of ORS 468B.050 or 468B.053; a landfill site which is used by the owner or person in control of the premises to dispose of soil, rock, concrete or other similar nondecomposable material, unless the site is used by the public either directly or through a solid waste collection service; or a site operated by a wrecker issued a certificate under ORS 822.110.
Drop Box means a single receptacle used to store solid waste or recyclable materials that is designed to be removed from the generator’s site on the back of a roll-off truck for unloading at a disposal site, material recovery facility, or other storage or processing facility. The contents of the receptacle are not mixed with the contents of other similar receptacles until delivery to a disposal site.
Force Majeure means acts of God, fire, landslides, lightning, storms, floods, freezing, earthquakes, epidemics, volcanic eruptions, public riots, civil disturbances, acts of the public enemy, wars, blockades, embargoes, or acts of civil or military authority, breakage, explosions or accident to machines or other materials, pipelines or materials, governmental restraint, unavailability of a disposal site and any other event which could not with reasonable diligence be controlled or prevented by the party affected by the event.
Franchise means a contract with the City allowing the use of public right-of-way to collect and transport solid waste.
Franchisee means a person, persons, business or corporation who has been granted a franchise to operate within the City of Ashland pursuant to this chapter.
Generator means a person, who by virtue of ownership, management or control, is responsible for causing or allowing to be caused the creation of solid waste or recyclable materials.
Gross Revenue for any period shall mean:
1. Gross accrual-based billings by the franchisee to customers for services provided under the franchise;
2. The allocated gain on the sale of fixed assets, the depreciation or amortization from which was an allowable expense under the terms of this chapter, and refunds, sales proceeds or other reimbursements for any other expense that was an allowable expense under this chapter; and
3. The accrual-based proceeds from the sales of recycled material collected within the franchise.
Hazardous Waste means solid waste or waste that may, by itself or in combination with other waste, be explosive, poisonous, caustic or toxic, or otherwise dangerous or injurious to human, plant or animal life, as defined by ORS 466.005.
Household Hazardous Waste means any discarded, useless or unwanted chemical, material, substance, or product that is or may be hazardous or toxic to the public or the environment and is commonly used in or around households. Household hazardous waste includes, but is not limited to, some cleaners, solvents, pesticides, and automotive and paint products.
Infectious Waste means biological waste, cultures and stocks, pathological waste, and sharps, as defined in ORS 459.386.
Material Recovery means any process of obtaining from solid waste, by presegregation or otherwise, materials that still have useful physical or chemical properties and can be reused or recycled for some purpose.
Material Recovery Facility means a solid waste management facility that separates or stores materials for the purposes of recycling from incoming, nonputrescible solid waste by using manual and/or mechanical methods. It also means a facility that primarily accepts previously separated recyclables.
Multifamily means any multi-dwelling building or group of buildings that (1) contain(s) five (5) or more dwelling units on a single lot, such as apartments, condominiums, and mobile home parks, and (2) receives services on a per-lot or per-building basis, as opposed to a per-unit basis. Multifamily complex also includes certified or licensed residential care housing, such as adult foster care homes, and group homes. Multifamily accounts are determined to be a residential waste stream.
Operating Margin means gross revenues minus allowable expenses within a given period.
Organic Waste means materials that can be biologically synthesized by plants or animals from simpler substances, are no longer suited for their intended purpose, and are readily broken down by biological processes into soil constituents. Examples include, but are not limited to, food waste, yard debris, contaminated paper, and putrescible materials that are generally a source of food for bacteria.
Putrescible Waste means solid waste containing organic material that can be rapidly decomposed by microorganisms, and which may give rise to foul-smelling, offensive products during such decomposition or which is capable of attracting or providing food for birds and potential disease vectors such as rodents and flies.
Receptacle means a can, cart, container, drop box, compactor or recycling bin or any other means of containment of solid waste or waste or recyclable materials.
Recyclable Material, Recyclable, Recyclables mean material that has or retains useful physical, chemical, or biological properties after serving its original purpose(s) or function(s), and is separated from solid waste by the generator or at a material recovery facility.
Recycling means any process by which waste materials are transformed into new products in such a manner that the original products may lose their identity.
Residence, Residential means any dwelling unit where at least fifty percent (50%) of the use of the entire building is for home use.
Self-Haul means collection and transportation of solid waste from a commercial, multifamily, or residential entity by the generator, owner or occupant of the property, rather than by a third party hired to perform this function.
Senior Discount Rate means a discounted collection rate provided to customers that meet the discounted utility rate provision of Resolution No. 92-22 or future related amendments.
Solid Waste or Waste. The terms “solid waste” and “waste” are interchangeable. Solid waste shall include all putrescible and nonputrescible waste, including, but not limited to, garbage; compost; organic waste; yard debris; brush and branches; land-clearing debris; sewer sludge; residential, commercial and industrial building demolition or construction waste; discarded residential, commercial and industrial appliances, equipment and furniture; discarded, inoperable or abandoned vehicles or vehicle parts and vehicle tires; manure; feces; vegetable or animal solid and semi-solid waste and dead animals; and infectious waste. “Waste” shall mean useless, unwanted or discarded materials. The fact that materials, which would otherwise come within the definition of solid waste, may, from time to time, have value and thus be utilized shall not remove them from the definition. The terms “solid waste” or “waste” do not include:
1. Recyclable materials or yard debris separated from solid waste and properly prepared for collection;
2. Hazardous wastes as defined in ORS 466.005;
3. Materials used for fertilizer or for other productive purposes on land in agricultural operations in the growing and harvesting of crops or the raising of fowl or animals;
4. Septic tank and cesspool pumping or chemical toilet waste;
5. Source-separated, principal recyclable materials, as defined in ORS 459A and the rules promulgated thereunder and under this chapter, which have been purchased or exchanged for fair market value, unless the City declares a site of uncollected principal recyclable materials to be a public nuisance;
6. Applications of industrial sludges or industrial waste byproducts authorized through a Land Use Compatibility Statement or Management Plan approval and that have been applied to agricultural lands according to accepted agronomic practices or accepted method approved by the Land Use Compatibility Statement or Management Plan, but not to exceed one hundred (100) dry tons per acre annually; and
7. Stabilized municipal sewage sludge applied for accepted beneficial uses on land in agricultural, nonagricultural, or silvicultural operations. Sludge-derived products applied for beneficial uses on land in landscaping projects.
Solid Waste Management and Collection Services mean prevention, reduction, management of the storage, collection, transportation, treatment, utilization, processing and final disposal of solid waste; or recycling, reuse and material recovery from solid waste; and facilities necessary or convenient to such activities.
Source-Separated Materials mean recyclable materials that have been separated by type of recyclable material and removed from the solid waste stream by the person who last used the recyclable materials.
Transfer Station means a fixed or mobile facility, other than a transportation vehicle, where solid waste is deposited temporarily after being removed from the site of generation but before being transported to a final disposal location.
Unallowable Expenses shall include the following:
1. All charitable and political contributions;
2. Fines and penalties, including without limitation judgments for violation of applicable laws, incurred by a licensee;
3. Payments for services provided by individuals related by blood or marriage or by affiliated companies to a licensee to the extent that such payments exceed the reasonable cost that would be charged by an independent third party to provide the substantially equivalent service;
4. Accruals for future unknown regulatory changes;
5. Costs associated with purchase of other companies including, but not limited to, employee stock ownership plan payments, goodwill, amortization of goodwill and premiums on key-person life insurance policies;
6. Principal or interest payments on the acquisition of solid waste, recyclable materials and yard debris collection routes; the purchase of equipment and/or facilities to the extent that the price includes goodwill or a premium in excess of fair market value at the time of acquisition; state and federal income taxes;
7. Fees paid to a franchisee’s board of directors;
8. Attorney’s fees and related expenses resulting from:
a. Any judicial proceeding in which the City and a franchisee are adverse parties, unless the franchisee is the prevailing party;
b. Any judicial proceeding in which a franchisee is ruled to be liable due to willful misconduct or gross negligence or in violation of law or regulation, excluding judicial proceedings involving traffic accidents;
9. Operation of a community access recycling depot not physically located or operated in conjunction with the franchisee’s transfer station;
10. Recycling operations expenses already calculated and incorporated into franchisee’s tipping fees;
11. Any other expenses defined as “unallowable” and approved by mutual consent of the franchisee and the Council.
Utilization. The terms “utilize,” “utilization,” or “utilization of solid waste or waste” shall mean productive use through recycling, reuse, salvage, resource recovery, energy recovery, or land filling for reclamation, habitation, or rehabilitation of land.
Waste Evaluation means an evaluation completed by the City or a franchisee of a commercial entity’s waste management practices, for the purpose of providing guidance to a multifamily or commercial customer on effective means to reduce waste, increase recycling, and purchase recycled products.
Yard Debris means grass clippings, leaves, tree and shrub prunings of no greater than four (4) inches in diameter or similar yard and garden vegetation. Yard debris does not include such items as: dirt, sod, stumps, logs, tree and shrub prunings greater than four (4) inches in diameter, rocks, plastic, animal waste or manure, cat litter, potting soil, prepared food wastes or nonputrescible material. (Ord. 3172 § 4, added, 02/05/2019)