VIDALIA — Two Concordia Parish Police Jury committees voted Tuesday to recommend to the full board that the parish seek bids on its waste contract.

Jury President Jimmy Wilkinson said the board had to decide by Sept. 30 if the parish would renew with Waste Pro for an additional two years.

Wilkinson said a renewal would mean the rate charged to the parish per household would increase more than $4 per month.

The rate for once-a-week pickup would jump from approximately $7,85 to $12 per household, he said. No additional services would be added.

Wilkinson said the increase for the parish would amount to an approximately $270,000 bump. The garbage rate in the parish is sales tax generated.

Wilkinson said if the jury accepted the $270,000 increase that funding would have to come out of the parish’s general fund. The parish would have to take away funding from drainage projects, which also come out of that sales tax fund, Wilkinson said.

The contract is for 5,000 households. However, Wilkinson said he was not sure Waste Pro was serving 5,000 households in the parish.

Ferriday, Clayton and Ridgecrest have separate contracts and Vidalia runs its own waste collection service.

Wilkinson said to get a rough idea of the number of households he obtained water meter information for the areas in question. Taking out the Tensas Parish and Catahoula Parish meters, Wilkinson said only 4,382 meters are active in Concordia Parish.

Police Juror Whest Shirley said he would also add that approximately 100 fishing and hunting camps are inaccessible several months out of the year and are not generating once-a-week garbage when they are accessible.

Juror Carey Cook asked if the solid waste committee had any indication the parish would receive any proposals if the contract were to be bid out.

Wilkinson said a few people have inquired about it.

“If we put this out for bid, there will be some competition,” Wilkinson said.

Shirley motioned to recommend seeking proposals, and Cook seconded it. The vote was unanimous with Juror Joe Parker absent.

The committee will make a recommendation for the parish to seek bids Monday at the jury’s regularly scheduled meeting.

“I think we would be doing the right thing putting it out for bid,” Wilkinson said. “We can’t afford a jump like that.”