Under new rules approved Thursday by Warren Fiscal Court, companies providing commercial and industrial waste collection and disposal services without a county franchise agreement may face stiffer penalties.

Fiscal court magistrates approved on second and final reading amendments to a county ordinance related to penalties for not obtaining a C&I franchise, and county Environmental Planning and Assistance Director Lawrence White says the amendments “put teeth” into the ordinance.

“Due to a number of small companies popping up, trying to provide dumpster services, we’re trying to bring more enforcement,” White said after Thursday’s meeting. “They (companies without a franchise) have already been notified. Some are not paying attention to the notification.

“With the amendments, we can possibly bring them to court. They can be fined and they could also be liable for attorney’s fees.”

The amendments approved Thursday identify operating without a C&I franchise as a Class A misdemeanor and identifies the nine companies approved for C&I franchises in 2022.

Sixth District Magistrate Ron Cummings, a member of the county’s solid waste committee, said the current climate in which many companies are operating illegally creates inequities for these approved companies: Blue Moon Sanitation, Scott Waste Services, Republic Services, Green River Waste, Taylor Sanitation, TPM Inc., Shelby Recycling, BG Dumpster, and Waste Management of Kentucky.

“We’re not trying to be mean, but we want to be fair to everybody,” Cummings said. “The franchisees are paying a fee to operate. These others are not paying it.”

White said the problems arising from these “rogue” waste collectors go beyond not paying the franchise fee.

“We have abatement crews spending time cleaning up litter across the county,” he said. “We can’t tell what’s coming from our franchisees and what’s coming from other (illegal) companies. The franchisees have to indemnify the county. There are a lot of liability issues (with the illegal companies).”

White said he has identified “at least 10 companies” providing C&I waste collection services illegally.

“The number seems to be growing,” White said. “I have stopped companies from Westmoreland, Tenn., Scottsville, Brownsville, Owensboro and Elkton. Some will cease operating and then come back.”

Some of the rogue companies, White said, are operating without business licenses, adding to their potential liability.

With these amendments to the ordinance about C&I waste, White and Cummings hope the county can put an end to the companies operating illegally.

“They can expect us to be a little more forceful now,” White said.

“These companies need to know that if they’re operating illegally, we’re going to come and get you,” Cummings said.

The magistrates on Thursday also passed the first reading of an ordinance that has potential to expedite the funding and implementation of transportation projects within Warren County.

They passed in a 6-0 vote an ordinance enacting and creating the Warren County Transportation Improvement District, a special-purpose governmental entity now allowable in Kentucky cities and counties after passage of state legislation in 2022.

Former State Rep. Jim DeCesare, who now operates the DeCesare Group consulting and public relations firm, explained to the magistrates that the TID will allow for receipt of state and federal funds for various transportation projects and can include public-private partnerships.

“Communities in Ohio have done this for years and have been very successful,” DeCesare said. “The TID allows for local control and better access to state and federal funds. The biggest asset is the speed of getting projects completed.”

Boone County in the greater Cincinnati area became the first Kentucky county to create a TID earlier this year. With a large number of Warren County projects included in the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet’s six-year road plan, Warren County Judge-Executive Doug Gorman said now is a good time to create a local TID.

“There are about $500 million worth of projects in the road plan,” Gorman said. “This (TID) will give us the ability to speed things up. With our growth, this is something we needed to look at.”

Under state law, the TID will be governed by a board of trustees that includes five voting members. Initially, the judge-executive will appoint one member to a three-year term, two members to two-year terms, and two members for one-year terms. After the initial formation of the board, a full term will be four years.

The TID will report, at least semi-annually, to fiscal court its activities and give updates on approved projects.

Among other items approved at Thursday’s meeting:

•An expenditure of $15,788 to Bluegrass Ballfields for the purchase of four portable combo football/soccer goals for Henry F. Moss Middle School and Jennings Creek Elementary School.

•An expenditure of $16,000 per year to Turf Tank Two for two robotic painting machines for weekly painting of athletic fields throughout county parks.

•A lease agreement with Enterprise Fleet, at $2,800 per month, for a 2025 International dump truck with attachments to be used by the county road department to replace a 1994 truck.

The two August meetings of Warren Fiscal Court are scheduled for Aug. 8 and Aug. 29, both at 9 a.m. in the county courthouse.