Mayor Jasiel Correia is pleased with the ruling of a Superior Court Judge in Taunton yesterday that stopped a “Ten Taxpayer Group” lawsuit that requested an injunction be put in place to stop the privatization of trash collection in the city. It was City Councilor Ray Mitchell that began the process to try and stop the privatization…to no avail.
FRC Media News spoke with Mitchell by phone today. He says, “The judge felt that since the city council voted to accept the Fiscal Year 2017 budget that included the monies for the privatization there was no reason to bring the case to court.”
As has been reported, the council, after a failed first vote to accept the budget, voted 5-4 this week to approve the approximately $255 million dollar spending plan. Mitchell contends that if that if that had not happened the judge may have considered putting the injunction in place. Along another vein, councilors learned after the last vote that they could have vetoed line items in the budget, which they had not done since the 1970’s, according to Mitchell.
“It is my opinion that over the ten year contract with EZ Disposal the city will have to pay $12 million dollars for trash collection and removal, which is far more than would be paid out if city workers would continue to do the work,” Mitchell says. He also believes that the city did not negotiate in good faith with DCM workers before Mayor Correia signed the contract with EZ Disposal.
“Because of the mayor’s failure to negotiate properly with the DCM union the city will most likely have to pay the union more money as the end result of a lawsuit that union members may file against the city.”
The privatization of trash will begin tomorrow, July 1st which is the start of the new fiscal year. Mayor Correia is asking for patience on the part of residents, saying the program is brand new and will take time to get up to snuff.
Reportedly, EZ Disposal will be fined $25 dollars per household where trash is not collected.
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