Private garbage haulers in Warren County will have until May 31 to turn in accurate customer lists to the county, supervisors said Monday.

The move represents the most direct action yet by supervisors in a quest to measure county compliance with state-mandated garbage disposal laws.

“There have been numerous discrepancies,” Board President Richard George said. “At this time, it’s much more prudent to get (the lists) now.”

When efforts between the office and the county addressing coordinator began early last year, about 5,420 residents were actively paying and nearly 5,000 were unaccounted for in the garbage database. Updates have been sporadic as structures have been added and subtracted, with the goal being to match accounts with actual structures.

Environmental Officer Kelly Worthy has said at least 1,300 accounts may be added once the database is fully updated.

The state requires the county to monitor and report garbage disposal arrangements for every property owner. Here, all collections are by private firms and the effort is to match their list of paying customers with the county’s master list.

More than $67,000 has been transferred from the general fund to the fund set aside to hold the $1.25-per-customer surcharges added to residential and commercial bills that keep the county compliant with laws stipulating rubbish be disposed of in trash receptacles or in commercial bins if attested to in writing.

The shortfalls stemmed from gaps left when customers move without notifying their hauler or the county. In March, an $8,348.93 interfund loan to the garbage fund was approved when discrepancies emerged on lists submitted by Waste Management, the largest of three corporate providers outside municipal limits.

Three private individuals are permitted to pick up garbage in the county. Mostly second- or third-generation family businesses, the private haulers must use approved packer trucks to maintain permits.

Accounts confirmed as out of compliance with paying the surcharges were turned over to a private collections firm hired in January.

*

Contact Danny Barrett Jr. at dbarrett@vicksburgpost.com