Dominic Anthony Walsh / Houston Public Media
Council member Alejandra Salinas listens to City Attorney Arturo Michel on Apr. 1, 2025.
With a $5 charge related to solid waste services coming to Houstonians’ monthly utility bills in August, the city council voted Wednesday to offer financial assistance to certain residents.
“I think this is going to provide real relief to Houstonians who are worried about the upcoming fee,” said council member Alejandra Salinas, who spearheaded the change.
Under a preexisting program, residents above the age of 59, households with incomes at or below the federal poverty line and people with disabilities are eligible for up to $100 in assistance toward their utility bills every six months. With Wednesday’s vote, the program can now provide relief with the garbage-related fee.
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Mayor John Whitmire’s administration advanced the “administrative fee” for solid waste services last week, when the city council approved his $7.5 billion budget in a 15-1 vote. The fee does not currently cover the full cost of garbage and recycling services, calculated at more than $25 per customer per month by a cost-of-service study unveiled this year.
Whitmire’s proposal contemplated raising the fee incrementally until it reaches $25 per month in six years — at which point approximately 400,000 solid waste customers would face a $300 annual expense.
During townhalls, council member Carolyn Evans-Shabazz said, the financial burden of the new fee was “one of the main concerns we heard, especially from seniors, families on fixed incomes, and those doing everything they can to keep up.”
“We have a responsibility to make difficult financial decisions but also to provide solutions,” she said.
Applicants for assistance must provide the city with a copy of a water and drainage bill, federal award letters for disability-related financial assistance — like supplemental social security — as well as income information and official identification for all households residents.