新奥尔良市议会通过垃圾费上调条例：住宅用户每月涨至32.25美元，65岁以上低收入户可豁免
新奥尔良市议会在10月1日的常规会议上通过多项立法，其中包括上调垃圾清运费的修订条例。据市议会官网发布的会议纪要，第35,384号条例（修订版）获得通过：自2026年10月1日至2027年12月31日，住宅用户每月垃圾费涨至32.25美元，非住宅用户涨至64.50美元。议会表示，上调是为了应对不断上涨的收运成本，使垃圾收费收入与提供服务的成本更加匹配。从2028年1月1日起，将启用一套按服务成本核算的新收费标准。条例保留了对65岁以上低收入居民的保护：符合条件的家庭可申请年度豁免，免除超出历史费率的涨价部分。
同场通过的第35,495号条例设立了“嘉年华缺口调整与游行费”（GAP Fee），用于弥补市政府组织狂欢节游行的各项成本。新条例取代了原来每辆花车850美元、每家机构上限4.5万美元的收费方式，改为按游行中牵引单元数量分三档收取固定费用：14至27个牵引单元收4,250美元，28至36个收6,500美元，37至45个收8,500美元。费用须在游行次年4月30日前缴清，狂欢节机构须提交经宣誓的牵引单元数量证明；自9月1日起可按上一年度游行规模预缴，若实际规模进入更高档位，须在4月30日前补足差额。
议会还通过第35,543号条例，加强对公共项目承包商的监管：要求承包商遵守所有适用的联邦、州和地方法律，在投标过程中提供关键信息披露，市政府可按公平程序取消缺乏资质、经验或履约能力的承包商资格，违规者可面临处罚。
在住房议题上，议会通过 R-26-362 号决议，支持将下花园区（Lower Garden District）River Garden Apartments II 项目现有的“以付款代替税收”（PILOT）协议转让并延期，以资助一项近1,000万美元的翻新工程。该项目包括310套混合收入出租单元和2.5万平方英尺商业空间，翻新后保障性住房单元将从124套增至153套。
此外，议会通过 M-26-368 号动议，要求新奥尔良污水与水务局（SWBNO）制定并批准一项偿还欠市政府1,300万美元的还款计划。鉴于市财政持续赤字及增收追欠的努力，动议要求水务局董事会在10月1日前批准还款方案，并由代表向市议会作报告。
会议开始前，议会还表彰了 WWNO 电台《The Reading Life》与 Bookmark 节目主持人苏珊·拉尔森（Susan Larson）退休，称赞其著作《The Booklover's Guide to New Orleans》是这座城市权威的文学旅行指南。
（来源：新奥尔良市议会官网 council.nola.gov 10月1日会议纪要）
New Orleans City Council Adopts Sanitation Fee Hike: Residential Rate Rises to $32.25 a Month
The New Orleans City Council adopted several pieces of legislation at its regular meeting on October 1, including a revised ordinance raising sanitation fees, according to the meeting summary published on the council's website.
Ordinance No. 35,384, as amended, raises monthly sanitation fees to $32.25 for residential customers and $64.50 for non-residential customers from October 1, 2026, through December 31, 2027. The increases are intended to keep pace with rising collection costs and bring sanitation revenues more closely in line with the cost of providing services. Beginning January 1, 2028, a new fee structure based on service costs will take effect. The ordinance retains protections for low-income residents age 65 and older, allowing eligible households to receive an annual exemption from sanitation charge increases above the applicable historical rate.
The council also adopted Ordinance No. 35,495, establishing a Carnival Gap Adjustment for Parades Fee (GAP Fee) to help offset the city's costs for all aspects of Carnival parades. The amendment replaces the original $850-per-float fee, capped at $45,000 per organization, with a three-tier flat fee based on pull units: $4,250 for 14-27 pull units, $6,500 for 28-36, and $8,500 for 37-45. The fee must be paid by April 30 following the parade, with prepayment allowed from September 1 based on the previous parade's pull-unit count; organizations that land in a higher tier must pay the difference by April 30.
Ordinance No. 35,543 strengthens oversight of public-project contractors, requiring compliance with all applicable federal, state, and local laws, key disclosures during bidding, and a fair process to disqualify contractors lacking qualifications, experience, or capacity, with penalties for violations.
On housing, the council adopted Resolution R-26-362 supporting the assignment and extension of an existing Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILOT) agreement for River Garden Apartments II in the Lower Garden District to help finance a nearly $10 million renovation. The property includes 310 mixed-income rental units and 25,000 square feet of commercial space; affordable units would increase from 124 to 153.
Motion M-26-368 directs the Sewerage and Water Board of New Orleans (SWBNO) to develop and approve a plan to repay $13 million it owes the city, with the board required to approve a repayment proposal by October 1, 2026, and present it to the council.
Before the meeting, the council honored Susan Larson on her retirement as host of WWNO's The Reading Life and Bookmark programming, praising her book The Booklover's Guide to New Orleans as the definitive literary travel companion for the city.
(Source: New Orleans City Council, council.nola.gov, October 1 meeting summary)
图片来源：图片来源：Wikimedia Commons，Bart Everson 摄，CC BY 2.0 授权
