Summit Hill Borough Council tentatively adopted its 2021 budget, which calls for taxes to remain the same and trash collection fees to decrease.

The budget is based on 18.5 mills, including 16.5 mills for general purposes, 1.5 mills for street lighting and a half mill for fire allocation.

The council expects final adoption at its December meeting.

Included in the budget is the annual garbage collection fee. The cost per residence in 2021 will be less than it was the past year.

David Wargo, chairman of the sanitation committee, said the yearly fee will be $195 per household. There will be no discount for e-bill paying or annual payments as there had been in the past.

The trash collection fee for the past few years was $210 per year, but a discount was permitted if the fee was paid in one payment or if payment was done online.

The borough will have a new trash collecting company effective Jan. 1. County Waste was awarded the bid last month to collect the refuse in the borough, submitting the lowest figure of three firms that tendered proposals.

Wargo said the borough was bound by law to accept the lowest bid unless there were obvious reasons why it should be rejected.

He also said he went through the contract and nothing will change for borough residents except there will be no separate recycling collection.

Although in other communities County Waste supplies its own garbage bins, Wargo said there’s nothing in the contract that says residents can’t place their own trash cans at curbside.

He said the contract stipulates households can have up to five bags of garbage per week, each weighing up to 50 pounds, and one bulk item. The contract also mandates ashes must be taken by the garbage collector.

“Our contract is very specific,” Wargo said, adding that fall and spring cleanups are listed and there will be an annual electronics recycling.

Kira Steber, the borough’s secretary-treasurer, suggested a letter be sent to borough residents or placed on the borough’s Facebook page clarifying the trash collection rules. This will be done after the borough meets with officials from County Waste.

It’s not known what day of the week County Waste will pick up trash once the contract goes into effect.

Borough resident John Evans asked why recycling won’t continue.

Wargo explained trash collection firms charge a higher rate when it has recycling collections because the demand for recyclables had decreased. When the contract was advertised for bids, there was an option for recycling. He said adding that option would have meant higher trash collection fees for residents.

In other business

• The council agreed to increase the rate of pay for part-time police officers to $21, increasing to $22 after one year of service. Presently part-time officers receive $17 an hour to start, with the rate increasing to $18 after a year of service.

In prior meetings, it was noted the lower rate of pay makes it difficult for the borough to retain part-time officers when other towns have higher pay scales.

• The council also finalized a five-year rental agreement with the Summit Hill Water Authority. The agreement allows the authority to utilize space in the Municipal Building at the rate of $900 per month, which includes utilities and maintenance. The authority will have the option of extending the agreement an additional five years.