What are the charges on my WM invoice?

Type of Charge

Description

Administrative Charge

The Administrative Charge is applicable to collection customers except where prohibited by law. The Administrative Charge covers the cost of generating paper invoices and processing paper invoice payments. By eliminating paper invoices with return envelopes, we reduce waste and drive down costs associated with preparing and mailing paper invoices. Customers can avoid this charge by signing up for automatic, pre-authorized payment and paperless billing through "My Account" on wm.com . Customers benefit from automated, pre-authorized payment and paperless billing by saving them time and money required for postage to mail the payment. In addition, customers can rely on the on-time, hassle-free processing of their payment.

Energy Surcharge

Fuel/Environmental
Charge

For most WM customers, starting in April 2023 WM absorbed its Environmental Charge and Regulatory Cost Recovery Charge into each customer’s base service rate so those charges will no longer appear separately on most bills. WM also replaced its Fuel Surcharge with an Energy Surcharge that incorporates both diesel fuel and Compressed Natural Gas (“CNG”) fuel price changes. However, in certain instances due to contract or other restrictions, some WM customers may still be charged and see the Fuel/Environmental and RCR charges on their invoices.

The Fuel/Environmental Charge is typically one line item containing two components: (1) Fuel Surcharge and (2) Environmental Charge. The Fuel Surcharge is a recurring charge and is typically a fluctuating percentage of all invoice charges including all ancillary charges, excluding the Environmental Charge, Regulatory Cost Recovery Charge and taxes, based on the U.S. Department of Energy weekly diesel price index, or for Canadian customers, the Canadian national diesel price index as published by Bloomberg. Fuel charges are common in the waste and transportation industries, such as airlines, trucking and delivery service companies, and in utilities. This charge fluctuates with the nationally published price of diesel and is intended to measure the changes in the cost of diesel, natural gas, and other hydrocarbon-based fuels and products that our WM operating companies use in our overall enterprise. The Environmental Charge is a recurring charge and is typically a fixed percentage (currently 20%, subject to change) of all invoice charges including all ancillary charges, including the Fuel Surcharge, but excluding the Regulatory Cost Recovery Charge and taxes. The Environmental Charge is intended to cover Waste Management's enterprise-wide environmentally-related costs for its WM operating companies to operate in a safe and environmentally responsible manner, plus an acceptable operating margin. Such enterprise-wide environmental costs include, without limitation, landfill cover material, engineering, testing and maintenance of landfills or other disposal facilities, the disposal of tires, batteries, oils and fluids and the monitoring and management of vehicle emissions. Learn more about the Fuel/Environmental Charge for customers in the US and customers in Canada.

Regulatory Cost Recovery Charge

For most WM customers, starting in April 2023 WM absorbed its Environmental Charge and Regulatory Cost Recovery Charge into each customer’s base service rate so those charges will no longer appear separately on most bills. WM also replaced its Fuel Surcharge with an Energy Surcharge that incorporates both diesel fuel and Compressed Natural Gas (“CNG”) fuel price changes. However, in certain instances due to contract or other restrictions, some WM customers may still be charged and see the Fuel/Environmental and RCR charges on their invoices.

The RCR Charge is a fixed percentage (currently 3.6%, subject to change) of all invoice charges including all ancillary charges, including the Fuel/Environmental Charge, but excluding taxes. This charge is intended to cover a portion of Waste Management's enterprise-wide costs associated with host community fees, waste disposal taxes and similar charges that our WM operating companies pay to municipal or other governmental authorities or agencies to engage in the waste collection, transfer, processing, disposal, treatment, and/or recycling business, plus an acceptable operating margin. Learn more about the Regulatory Cost Recovery Charge for customers in the US and customers in Canada.

Recyclable Material
Offset

The Recyclable Material Offset (RMO) is a price adjustment that allows our WM operating companies to achieve an acceptable operating margin despite increased recycling costs and/or declines in the value of processed recyclables in the global commodities market. The RMO is usually a charge but could be a credit to the customer’s bill and is calculated based on the amount that (a) our applicable WM operating company processing cost per ton, including costs of disposal for contamination and profit margin, exceeds (b) an amount equal to the blended value per ton of processed recyclables, minus an amount for profit margin. The RMO, including profit margin, processing and disposal costs, and recyclables blended value shall be determined by WM from time-to-time, in its sole discretion, based on applicable operating data and market information. In October 2023, WM refined the RMO calculation for customers in the US by incorporating objective index values for blended commodity prices which increased the charge modestly at that time but allows the value of the charge to increase or decrease over time in a manner more reflective of changes in the market price of recyclable commodities as reflected by those indices. If the recyclables’ blended index value exceeds processing costs, plus profit margin, an RMO credit may apply, at the company's sole discretion.  WM will monitor changes in the recycling commodities market and recycling costs and may adjust the calculation of this charge, in our discretion, as appropriate in the future. The RMO applies to recycle collection customers except those exempted from the charge by contract or non-paying customers and is subject to a customer's applicable service agreement terms. Learn more about the Recyclable Material Offset and other recyling charges for customers in the US and customers in Canada.

Prorated Services
Charges

Prorated services can occur for commercial, roll-off or residential collection customers. Typically, service start dates fall outside standard invoicing or billing periods. When this occurs, customers receive service charges adjusted (or prorated) for the month or billing period when services start. Generally, most customers are billed in advance for service. Therefore, the customer's first invoice will contain prorated service charges and advanced billing. For example, if a customer requests services to start on the 20th of June, the customer's first invoice will show 10 days of prorated services for June as well as the full monthly charges for July. Some residential customers are invoiced on a quarterly or other longer billing cycle. These customers would receive a prorated charge for the current billing period, as well as advance charges for the subsequent quarterly or another billing period.

Taxes

Taxes may apply to charges for products and services included in your invoice. Specific taxes vary by state/province and locality.

Waste Water
Management Charge

The Waste Water Management (WWM) charge applies to disposal customers only. The WWM charge is a fixed percentage (currently 18.9%, subject to change) of applicable disposal and invoice charges, before taxes. This charge allows us to cover Waste Management's enterprise-wide costs associated with collecting, treating, disposing and managing the wastewater generated by our landfills and other post-collection operations in accordance with applicable law and a safe and environmentally responsible manner, and for us to achieve an acceptable operating margin. Wastewater is generated when any form of liquid, including water, passes through waste materials.  As such, wastewater generation is a concern for most landfills and disposal facilities and requires specific collection, treatment, and disposal.

Additional Services and Other Invoice
Charges

For roll-off service, there are monthly minimum haul or inactivity charges and minimum tonnage charges that apply. Other additional charges also may be incurred for additional services and other reasons including but not limited to the following: container overages or overfilling; contamination or non-conforming waste; demurrage; dig out service; late payment; a returned check for non-sufficient funds; delivery, moving or removing a container; resumed/restart services for previously suspended/terminated for non-payment; and extra trips. The amount of these charges vary by service area and may change from time to time, as set by a WM operating company for its customers.  Customers are advised to request the current charge amount for any additional service at the time of ordering or customer initiation.  For more information on these charges, call the number listed on your invoice to speak with a local service representative.

Cameras To Help With Operational Efficiency

As part of our operational efficiency and providing you better service and safety, cameras and other devices such as the WM Smart Truck^SM system may be enabled on trucks and dumpsters to capture images (still and/or video) of dumpsters, waste and recycling materials and events related to your service. This also helps ensure compliance with contract terms including, but not limited to, charges related to overloaded and damaged containers and contamination based on information from such images.