Household bin collection tax in France: many communes found to be overcharging
Authorities charging up to 160% of actual fees risk legal action, but say money is being used to improve waste services
Hundreds of communes reportedly charged excess bin fees to residents and property owners
Mikalai Kachanovich/Shutterstock
Local authorities in France are under-fire over waste collection fees, as hundreds have reportedly charged residents more than the cost of the service provided.
The claim comes after French media outlet Le Monde saw internal documents from official environmental agency ADEME about the collection charges.
Local authorities in control of setting collection fees (often intercommunal bodies, grouping several communes) are said to have been charging as much as 160% the actual cost of the services provided in recent years, greatly increasing bills for residents and property owners.
Authorities under scrutiny include large cities such as Dijon (charging 159% in 2022) and Bordeaux (144% in 2021), alongside smaller rural communities including Pays de Sommières (Gard, 140% in 2022).
Both types of bin fees affected
The claims of overcharging apply to both kinds of waste collection fees in France, the TEOM (Taxe d'enlèvement des ordures ménagères) and REOM (Redevance d'enlèvement des ordures ménagères).
Where applicable, TEOM is charged to the property owner (or person with a legal lifetime use) of a property and is part of the annual taxe foncière bill. REOM, where it is in place, is paid by the occupant and collected locally by authorities through a direct bill to the occupant.
TEOM is charged at a basic rate regardless of how much the service is used (or if it is used at all) though in some areas there can also be a part of the bill related to the amount of rubbish put out, as an ‘incentive’ charge.
REOM often fluctuates based on how much waste is collected.
In both cases the final bill sent to residents or owners is often more than the amount paid to service-providers (usually third-party contracted groups) for their work.
Each year between 2021 and 2023, more than half of authorities listed in the Ademe documents charged more than 100% of the amount paid to contractors. Around 10-15% of authorities charged more than 115% of the actual cost.
A list of the fees charged by authorities from the classified documents have been compiled by Le Monde into a spreadsheet which can be viewed here.
Legal complications over charges
Fees being charged for services residents are not receiving is potentially illegal.
Article 1520 of France’s General Tax Code states that waste collection fees such as TEOM should cover costs related to the service. They therefore cannot be used as a way for authorities to collect additional funds for various other municipal expenditures.
In 2014, the Conseil d’Etat said authorities should ensure the revenue from the fees should not be “manifestly disproportionate to the amount of expenditure,” and in 2015 the French Finance Ministry stated authorities should keep fees “well below 115%” of the overall real cost of service.
When contacted by Le Monde, several authorities justified the costs by arguing the extra money was being used towards investments that would improve waste management.
For example, the head of services for the Val Vanoise authority Cyril Colom, stated some of the money would go towards modernising a depot for bin lorries.
“Not lowering the tax as much as we could have allowed us to set aside significant sums, which allowed us to borrow from banks to secure financing for several projects,” he said. “This is not just about giving us a financial cushion, it is about investing to reduce the cost of the bin service over the next 25 years.”
The authority has charged between 130% to 160% of the real cost of waste collection fees in recent years.
Saint-Malo said the funds are being used to “finance future projects”, including those related to biowaste related to new laws on waste management in place in France, and for improvements to waste treatment facilities.
Mauges (Maine-et-Loire) said its 121% REOM fee in 2023 was to help with backlogged costs.
“The higher fee allows us to not only to absorb a previous deficit, but also to anticipate investment work for the optimisation of the network of waste disposal sites in the area (renovation, upgrading, etc.), as well as the future increase in the cost of treating household waste,” it said.
The level of fees has resulted in some residents taking legal action against their local authority. In 2022 authorities for the Greater Nancy area were required to repay over €30 million to residents for overcharging on waste collection fees.
