Waste Hauler Service Seeks Rate Adjustment

1/14/25 UPDATE: The Board scheduled a public hearing for 10:30 AM Tuesday, January 28, to consider the rate adjustment request.

For Immediate Release –

Marin County, CA –

Board of Supervisors to consider a 3.61% rate increase for Marin Sanitary Service

Residents in certain areas of central and southern Marin may soon see increases in their monthly waste hauler fees. At the Marin County Board of Supervisors meeting on January 14, the Supervisors will consider a request from Marin Sanitary Service (MSS) to increase its rate by 3.61% for 2025.

This year’s MSS rate adjustment would bring an estimated increase of 50 cents per month for the company’s most common residential service package, for an estimated monthly total of $55.92. If approved, the new rate would be retroactive to January 1.

The areas of Marin under MSS’ franchise agreement are Central Marin, Ross Valley South, and Ross Valley North. The neighborhoods included in that are Bayside Acres, Bret Harte, Country Club Estates, Del Mesa Heights, Greenbrae, Greenbrae Boardwalk, Kentfield, Kent Woodlands, Lucky Drive, Oak Manor, Point San Quentin, and Sleepy Hollow.

Various jurisdictions in Marin have similar waste hauler franchise agreements with MSS. The jurisdictions of Fairfax, Larkspur, Ross, San Anselmo, San Rafael, Larkspur, Las Gallinas Valley Sanitary District, and the County of Marin coordinate and share information, striving to reduce costs for residents. The jurisdictions collaborate on a single annual rate review analysis of MSS to reduce agency costs.

R3 Consulting Group Inc. is the independent third-party reviewer that analyzed MSS’s 2025 rate application. R3’s analysis found that MSS requested rate adjustment is accurate and based on the U.S. city average Consumer Price Index for water, sewer, and trash collection (sometimes referred to as the WST Index). Documented increases in operating costs and industry requirements, such as the mandates of Senate Bill 1383, also added to the rate adjustment.