A Reader called us, annoyed by an article in which the Bolesławiec municipality “boasts that it has not increased residents’ waste fees”. The caller added that the authors of the text had failed to state how much the local government would be contributing from the budget to waste management.

She also argued that two years ago, municipal officials had reportedly told residents that the office could not subsidize this task.

She also added: – Let people find out that it is not the commune head who is being generous.

In a conversation with istotne.pl, the Reader stressed that the issue was not about money, because if everyone paid the fee honestly, she would not have a problem with it either. However, the person who contacted us is concerned that all this will take place at the expense of some important investments, such as road projects.

Jarosław Babiasz, head of the Agriculture, Real Estate and Municipal Services Department at the Bolesławiec Municipal Office:

First of all, I would like to explain that the post on the municipality’s website is purely informational, in response to numerous questions from residents about fee rates and account numbers for waste management fees that we receive in the new year. This information contains no marketing or self-promotional subtext. The Reader’s irritation is entirely incomprehensible and unnecessary.

Pursuant to the provisions of the amended Act of 13 September 1996 on maintaining cleanliness and order in municipalities (...), since mid-2021, under Article 6r(2da)(1), a municipal council may decide, by resolution, to cover part of the costs of operating the municipal waste management system from its own revenues not derived from collected municipal waste management fees, where the funds obtained from such fees are insufficient to cover the system’s operating costs. Such a resolution has been adopted by the Bolesławiec Municipal Council and by the majority of municipalities in Poland.

The last change to rates for inhabited properties took place on 1 January 2021. Since then, these rates have not changed, and any differences between fee revenues and waste management expenses have been covered from the municipal budget. It should be emphasized that this is not specific only to the Bolesławiec municipality, but to most, if not all, municipalities in Poland.

And he emphasizes:

We are making every effort to minimize these discrepancies through systematic checks of submitted declarations. In 2022 alone, the local office inspected 165 properties. The inspections revealed discrepancies in 43 declarations, resulting in the need to calculate fees retroactively, together with interest and reminder costs. Under the Tax Ordinance, the office may charge such a fee for up to five years retroactively. Given the rate multiplied by the number of household members and the months for which the fee should have been charged, this can amount to several thousand zlotys. It should be remembered that each of us generates waste, regardless of age.

Submitted declarations are checked using information held by the Municipal Office, as well as by municipal organizational units, including the Municipal Social Welfare Center, schools and preschools, and data obtained from homeowners’ associations and housing cooperatives. Under the Act on Maintaining Cleanliness and Order in Municipalities, anyone who, despite being required to do so, fails to submit a declaration stating the amount of municipal waste management fees, or provides false information in it, is liable to a fine of up to PLN 500. This penalty is imposed in addition to calculating the fee retroactively.

We therefore appeal to all residents who have not updated, in their previously submitted “waste” declarations, information concerning the number of people living on the property—for example, due to new people moving in, accepting refugees, a household member returning from abroad or studies, the birth of a child, and so on—to make the necessary changes immediately.

How much does it cost?

The head of the Agriculture, Real Estate and Municipal Services Department at the Bolesławiec Municipal Office, J. Babiasz:

Returning to the issue of subsidies, in 2021, expenses for the waste management system amounted to PLN 5,765,285, while revenues amounted to PLN 4,610,564. In 2022, estimated revenues amount to PLN 4,825,000, while expenses are PLN 5,968,500. The 2022 accounts have not yet been settled in the accounting system, so the amounts given are budget assumptions for 2022. In 2023, revenues of PLN 5,000,000 are planned, while expenses are expected to reach PLN 7,065,600, in accordance with the budget adopted for that year. At present, no planned investment is at risk because of this discrepancy. This does not, of course, change the fact that the funds resulting from this discrepancy could not be allocated to other purposes.