South Lake Tahoe electeds on Tuesday voted for the full garbage rate increase, while El Dorado County officials decided to stagger the fee.

The Waste Management Joint Powers Authority board in November approved South Tahoe Refuse bills to go up Jan. 1 in South Lake Tahoe by 8.81 percent, El Dorado County 9.34 percent and Douglas County 6.81 percent. On a monthly residential bill this would equate to an increase of $2.34 to $28.89, $2.85 to $33.32 and $1.21 to $18.93, respectively.

The JPA gave the individual jurisdictions the option to increase the bill starting in 2018 or to spread it over two years.

How the city noticed the rate increase it was such that what the elected were faced with was the full fee increase. They weren’t happy with not having the choice. So much so that Councilwoman Brooke Laine on Dec. 12 voted no, though she was the only one to do so.

The county on the other hand had the option to space the increase out – and that’s what it did. So, the immediate hike will be 6.26 percent in 2018 and 3.08 the following year.

Douglas County commissioners still need to vote on the increase.

— Lake Tahoe News staff report