October 12, 2011 – A city program to compensate condo owners for garbage pickup may be getting axed and that could cost larger buildings several thousand dollars.

Marina Towers Condominium Association, for example, receives $65,000 each year – the maximum allowed and approximately $75 per unit – as part of a “scavenger rebate,” according to a 2012 budget distributed to unit owners in August.

According to the city’s 2012 budget, however, Mayor Rahm Emanuel is proposing to eliminate the rebate.

“The city simply cannot afford this rebate any longer,” said Emanuel in a news release on Wednesday. “Eliminating this garbage rebate for condominium owners, a step also recommended by the city’s inspector general, is the fair and honest thing to do for Chicagoans.”

The rebate was first offered in 1984. Because the city does not pickup garbage from condominiums with five or more units, it was intended to compensate buildings that must hire private contractors to remove garbage.

(Left) Infographic from Chicago Mayor’s Office. Click on image to view as Adobe Acrobat Document.

The proposed budget, submitted to the city council on Wednesday, hopes to fill a $635.7 million deficit without increasing property or sales taxes or adding a new income tax. By law, the budget proposal must be approved by December 31.

• Petition: Eliminate Condo Refuse Rebate portion of 2012 Budget Proposal
• Website: City of Chicago 2012 Budget Ideas