Garbage haulers fighting city again

A group of private haulers renewed their legal challenge to a Minneapolis decision to seek competitive bids for residential trash hauling.

By STEVE BRANDT, Star Tribune

Last update: December 28, 2007 - 12:39 AM

The battle over who will haul residential trash in Minneapolis is headed back to court again.

A consortium of private haulers that serves half of the city's households has asked for a temporary injunction stopping city plans to seek proposals from other haulers.

The consortium, known as Minneapolis Refuse Inc. (MRI), claims that the city hasn't complied with state law and wants a judge to order the city to try to reach a deal with them.

The City Council voted earlier this month to seek proposals from MRI and other licensed haulers that want in on the city's garbage business. MRI has held the city contracts since 1971.

The MRI motion is scheduled to go before Judge William Howard in January. Haulers are batting one for two so far in legal requests to challenge the city's effort to inject more competition into garbage hauling.

First, MRI succeeded last year in forcing the city to follow the state law that was written to guide the process when cities switch from letting residents choose their haulers to organizing collection into geographic routes. But MRI lost a legal request that the city negotiate only with MRI and not other haulers who would like a share of city business.

Howard said in the latter ruling that the city must show "it has negotiated in good faith and its decision was reasonable under the circumstances."

The council ultimately decided to take proposals for four subsections of MRI territory. Price is only one of the criteria the city set for guiding its decision on who gets the business; service is another element for which some council members feel MRI will carry an advantage.

Steve Brandt • 612-673-4438

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