Lee Griffi, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Oxford County Council turned down a one-dollar hike in the cost of a bag of garbage at its last regular meeting, but it was back on this week’s agenda thanks to a motion by South-West Oxford Mayor, David Mayberry.
Council voted to up the cost of putting a bag of garbage on the curb to $3, representing a 50 per cent increase. The recorded vote wound up 7 to 3 and will come into effect Jan.1, 2026. The motion to hike the fee in May was defeated by a 5-5 vote but two members of council changed their minds this time around.
Phil Schaefer, Bernia Martin, Katie Grigg, Brian Petrie, Mark Peterson, Mayberry and Jim Palmer voted in favour of the motion. Jerry Acchione, Connie Lauder and Chris Parker opposed it. Lauder replaced Deb Tait while Paker sat in for Tillsonburg Mayor Deb Gilvesy. Grigg took the spot normally held by Warden Marcus Ryan. All three regular councillors were away for the March break.
Petrie, who also voted for the increase at the last meeting, said his decision comes down to the math involved.
“It is going to have to be paid for one way or another…We still need the same amount of revenue, regardless. The big increase here is in our waste collection contracts. Not one person I talked to said they didn’t want their garbage picked up.”
The Ingersoll mayor alluded to a 9.2 per cent increase in Woodstock’s waste collection budget this year and added the cost of a bag tag hasn’t increased since 2014.
“It’s certainly not something we take lightly…I think garbage collection is a very valuable service that people just don’t think about because it happens so efficiently and effectively that sometimes you take it for granted. If you had to get rid of your own garbage, what would you do?”
Petrie added he is worried $3 per bag may not be enough of an increase to cover costs.
Coun. Lauder explained her no vote came as a result of several factors, including the threat of tariffs from the US president, which could add to the financial pressures people face today.
“With the uncertainty we are facing at this time with possible job losses and increasing food costs, the threats of tariffs and just the cost of some people to keep a roof over their head. I don’t think this is the time to burden our citizens with an increase in the cost of bag tags.”
Acchione said he would rather see the county move to a hybrid system to encourage people to use one bag, recycle more and utilize the upcoming green bin system.
“I think it is a burden on everyone. Those who abuse and use the system will ultimately pay for it. I would consider a $3 bag tag if we had one or two bags untagged. I don’t want to use the word free as I realize there is no free system.”
He added the cost to municipalities to deal with illegal dumping might take a jump once the fee increase takes effect.
“It is only going to get worse. I’d like to think that if people could put a bag out with no tag it would save staff a lot of time and save the taxpayer a lot of money. For those reasons, I won’t support any increase at this time.”
Coun. Martin, who voted against the hike at the last meeting, explained the garbage bill needs to be paid one way or another.
“We will be faced with increased costs regardless of whether it's on the bag tag or whether it’s through reserves or the levy. Costs have gone up and we need to find a way to accommodate them. I would encourage people to start planning, strategizing and organizing their garbage in a way that allows them to start decreasing their costs now. Recycle more, find ways to compost or divert that organic waste now.”
Martin added it isn’t feasible for everyone to make that happen, but behaviours could change going forward.
“I am personally one of those households where there is no mechanism to divert organics, but I am willing to find a way to explore that ahead of the Jan. 1 implementation. I know the increase will encourage and incentivize more people to divert, which is the ultimate goal. If we don’t continue to divert the extreme cost of expanding or building a new landfill by far exceeds this one dollar (increase).”
Schaefer voted against the original motion that would have seen a $1 increase in May, but this time around, he backed it.
“I’ll support the increase to $3 at the present time, but I think we may be exhausting the public’s eagerness to accept further increases. We can’t reward people’s efforts to cut down on the number of bags they put out by charging them an ever-increasing amount for the ones they must put out.”
Revenue through the bag tag program has only increased by 5.5 per cent over the last five years despite a 10 per cent rise of the number of households in Oxford County. Schaefer said it’s a sign that people are reducing the amount of garbage they send to the landfill.
“The argument has been made that when we start the organic collection, a resident…will have reduced bag tag usage and even with the higher price their costs may not increase at all. But if our bag tag revenue flattens or even goes down because of this, we end up in the same position we are now.”
The green bin program will start in the City of Woodstock and Township of South-West Oxford in early 2026, but not until May of 2027 in the other Oxford municipalities of Blandford-Blenheim, East Zorra-Tavistock, Norwich, Ingersoll, Tillsonburg and Zorra.
County staff presented a report at the previous council meeting that forecasted a continued deficit in the bag tag program if rates were not increased. The end result would have been an increase in the tax levy of close to two per cent.
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