Twenty Carbon County municipalities will soon be getting a check from the county.

On Thursday, the county commissioners approved the repayment of 75 percent of the 2013 tipping fees to area municipalities. The reimbursements, which range from $365 to $8,800, are based on the tonnage collected by trash haulers in the municipality over the 2013 year.Earlier this year, the county voted to eliminate the $4 per-ton tipping fee because it had discontinued the recycling program in April 2013. The tipping fee was used to help with the operation of the recycling program.Commissioners' Chairman Wayne Nothstein said the municipalities only received 75 percent of the tipping fees collected for 2013 because of the recycling program still being in operation for the first three months of the year."It's been a long time coming though," he said, noting that once the county discontinued the program, officials had to change a number of plans and get approval to discontinue collecting the $4 per ton fee.Nothstein added that the county will start calculating the 2014 reimbursements once all municipalities report the tonnage collected to the county.Commissioner William O'Gurek added that the sooner the data is collected, the sooner the county can give back the money.He also urged municipalities to open up a dialogue with their contracted trash haulers to see if they can get a reduction in their contract since the haulers will no longer be charged the tipping fees at the landfills."I would hope they would return that fee back to the municipalities," he said.In other matters, O'Gurek spoke about the action taken by the board regarding the operation procedures of the Carbon County Housing Rehabilitation Program.He explained that the program, which helps low-income families complete needed home renovation projects, has a waiting list of over 200 residents.The action taken Thursday looks at what would happen if a person sells their home after the rehab work is completed. Currently, the program is free, as long as the homeowner does not sell the house within three years of the rehabilitation project. If they do, then they must repay the county the cost of theproject.O'Gurek said the county hasn't done any projects through the program since 2013 and currently has a fund balance of $259,000 specifically for the program.This year, the county hopes to complete at least 10 rehabs, with the possibility of more depending on the costs of the projects that are selected.The recipients for the program, who remain anonymous, can receive up to $12,000 in funding through Act 137, which is generated through fees charged for the recording of documents in the Carbon County Recorder of Deeds office.The funds are used to repair necessary items in residents' homes such as heating systems, roofing, siding, or electrical and plumbing systems.If the project bids come in over the $12,000 they are allotted, then the homeowners can either pay the difference or change the scope of work to be completed.The program is overseen by the Carbon County Office of Planning and Development and residents wishing to be placed on the list need to meet the income guidelines established by Housing and Urban Development.The program started in 2000, after county Recorder of Deeds Emmett McCall implemented fees on all property transfers in the county, per state approval.Since then, the fees have generated millions for housing rehabilitation projects and administration costs.The county tries to help as many homeowners as it can in a year through this program, but the waiting list continues to grow.For more information, call the Carbon County Office of Planning and Development Monday through Friday, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., at 570 325-3671.