SAN DIEGO (KGTV) -- A local business group is launching a ballot initiative to repeal San Diego's trash collection fee, saying voters should have the final say on the controversial charge.
Kevin Faulconer, CEO of the Lincoln Club Business League and former San Diego mayor, is leading the effort to repeal the fee, which went into effect last year. The fee marked the first time in more than a century that San Diego residents were required to pay for trash collection.
"Now what we're seeing is fee after fee, new tax proposal after new tax proposal, and what we're saying is enough is enough," Faulconer said.
Faulconer's goal is to collect 21,000 signatures by early August to qualify the initiative for the ballot. If passed, the proposal could eliminate trash fees for at least two years.
"Affordability is real, and San Diegans are doing everything they can to get by and yet what we're seeing out of city hall right now is they want them to pay more," Faulconer said.
When voters first approved the measure in 2022, the projected monthly charges ranged from $23 to $29. The fee now ranges from $32 to $44 per month, and costs are expected to increase at the start of each fiscal year.
Faulconer argues that City Hall has unfairly shifted the cost of trash collection onto residents rather than addressing long-standing budget and operational issues.
"The city never charged this tax before; they didn't have to, they didn't need to. So what we're saying is take care of business at City Hall, don't keep trying to put all your expenses on hard-working San Diego families," Faulconer said.
City leaders have defended the trash fee as a necessary step to stabilize the budget.
Signature gathering is expected to begin in the next few weeks.
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