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City News · Utilities

Trash Service Expands to Include the Bill

A new line item arrives on schedule, and the Council hears all about it.

Hawk Cove, Texas, July 21, 2026. Trash pickup in Hawk Cove has always come with a bill. As of June, it also comes with a charge for the bill. The City’s sewer and trash bill dated June 26, 2026 lists a new first line: “BILLING FEE (GARBAGE),” $10.00 (bill).

The garbage itself is $18.47, with $1.52 in tax, and sewer is $121.00. Without the new line, that comes to $140.99, which residents may recognize as very close to the $141.00 the Council set for wastewater and trash together on July 16, 2019 (minutes). With it, $150.99.

The hauler’s side

Republic Services billed the City $17.51 per residential customer for May, 205 customers in all, $3,589.55 (invoice). Its rate sheet “EFFECTIVE June 1, 2026” raises that by $0.86, to $18.37. The billing fee, at $10.00, is the larger of the two increases by $9.14. We congratulate the billing department on its growth.

The Council is informed

Tonight’s agenda gave the subject its own item: “Receive Informational Presentation from the Mayor Regarding the City’s Trash Utility Financial Analysis and the Basis for the Monthly Trash Billing Adjustment. No Council Action” (agenda, item 7a). Mayor Darren Evans explained that the trash contract’s overages “were not coming from those rates but coming from the … city coffers,” and said “there may be some increases.” He added that “this memo is available for public record” (meeting video, 15:01).

The item was marked No Council Action, and the Council took none. Council Member Rebecca Bernardi (Place 1) had a comment anyway: “There was no notice given to the citizens,” and “Nobody was made aware of any of that.” She asked that “on the next agenda we take action to have that $10 removed” (meeting video, 18:18). The Mayor said, “Thank you,” and the Council moved on to the sewer loan.

Highlights

  • Fee: $10.00 a month, listed as “BILLING FEE (GARBAGE).”
  • Ordinance, resolution or minutes adopting it: none that we hold.
  • Council action: none, as posted.
  • Next agenda: on September 28, 2026, Ms. Bernardi said she had “asked for that $10 fee to be brought before council for a decision” (meeting video, 27:12). We have not found it on an agenda since.

Residents who want to see the financial analysis may ask for the memo. Residents who want to see the vote may ask too. We will post whichever arrives first.

The full record is on the Fee Schedule. On the bill, the resident’s name, addresses, account number and mail barcode are covered. Meeting quotes are from the City’s meeting videos, checked against their captions; the video is the record.

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