Toledoans, many of whom bemoaned the steep April 1 increase of the city's monthly trash fee, soon can toss their trash a little more cheaply.

With the easy passage of Issue 5 at the polls Tuesday, Mayor Mike Bell plans to ask City Council to dial back the fee he asked them to increase this year to help address a $48 million deficit.

Toledo's monthly refuse fee was $8.50 for those who don't recycle and $1 for those who do. But on March 30, a divided council - the vote was 8-4 - bumped it up to $15 a month.

Passage of Issue 5 also ends the increased income tax paid by people who live in Toledo but work outside the city, Mr. Bell said.

Jen Sorgenfrei, Mr. Bell's spokesman, said council will be sent legislation to lower the trash fee to $5 for seniors with homestead exemptions and $8.50 for Toledoans who recycle.

People who refuse to recycle - even though every household in the city has been given a separate receptacle for recyclables - still will pay $15 a month. The fees are included in Toledo's water bills.

"Those people are dumb," said Francisco DeMartino, who was grocery shopping in West Toledo when he learned of the change. "It's easy to recycle now. I didn't used to do it, but now I do."

Mr. DeMartino, 88, a retired tool-and-die maker who moved to Toledo last year, said he rents an apartment, but the fee is passed on to him by his landlord.

"I plan on getting the discount," he said. "At 88, I think I earned it."

City Council President Wilma Brown, 74, said she was "happy for seniors" that the fee will be rolled back. It will happen "as soon as possible. That is what we promised," she said.

The trash fee increase to $15 was expected to generate $10.57 million toward addressing the 2010 general-fund deficit. With passage of Issue 5, the city now has greater leeway to use money from its 0.75 percent temporary income tax for operating expenditures rather than capital improvements.

The referendum to change allocation of the tax, which is a part of the city's entire 2.25 percent income tax, was overwhelmingly approved by voters.

Mayor Bell said the city now will be able to redirect about $7 million this year from the capital-improvements budget to the general fund. He said the change would not adversely affect street repaving plans this year.

Before the change that voters approved, a third of the revenue from the 0.75 percent tax - estimated at about $45 million this year - had to be allocated to capital improvements. The other two-thirds were funneled into the general fund, where the funds pay for a portion of the city's police and fire operations.

Mr. Bell said the city was able to have a balanced 2010 general-fund budget without the $7 million from the capital-improvements budget. That money could not be included in the 2010 general-fund budget by the March 31 deadline because voters could have rejected the idea.

Contact Ignazio Messina at:

imessina@theblade.com

or 419-724-6171.

First Published May 6, 2010, 8:50 p.m.