Starting Thursday, resident stickers for the transfer station on Birchswamp Road won't go quite as far as they once did.

The Warren Town Council voted earlier this month to reduce the amount of free trash drop-off included with the purchase of the dump $20 sticker from 800 pounds to 600. The free amount will be reduced to 400 pounds in July 2022, and by the beginning of the 2023-24 fiscal year in July 2023, dump stickers — and the long-standing free trash allowance that goes with them — will be phased out entirely.

The council voted 4 to 1 to implement the phase-out, with president Keri Cronin, who favored a more immediate approach, reluctantly voting against.

The change in fees comes as town officials prepare for tipping fee increases coming down the pike from the state.

Under a contract Warren Town Manager Kate Michaud recently signed, the overage rate will increase from $80 to $90 this coming fiscal year, which starts Thursday, July 1. In the contract's second year (fiscal year 2022-2023) that base rate will climb to $54 per ton, with the overage rate climbing again, from $90 to $100.

Last year, Warren hauled 4,141 tons of solid waste to the Central Landfill, paying for 3,144 tons at the base rate and 997 tons at the over-the-cap rate. Even if Warren dumps the same amount over the state cap this coming fiscal year, the bill will rise to close to $100,000. By 2022-23, when both the base and over-the-cap rates increase, the town could find itself in a precarious financial position, Warren Town Manager Kate Michaud said.

Though several councilors said they don't want to have to take away a service that has been given for many years, they were pragmatic and mostly agreed that now is the time to start adjusting to the new reality of increasing state fees:

"I'm not going to kick the trash can down the road," said councilor Joseph Depasquale. "The big picture is, people need to adjust how they deal with trash. We have to start making changes."

While Ms. Michaud's recommendation was that the stickers and free 800 pounds be eliminated this coming year, councilor Steve Calenda, who motioned instead for the phaseout, said he believes eliminating it over several years would make it more palatable.

As far as doing away with the sticker goes, DPW Director Jan Malik said he favors the elimination of the sticker and freebie, as "it's putting everybody on the same playing field" and makes fiscal sense.

"No other community in the state has given (residents) anything free at the landfill," he said. "Just because we've been doing it for years doesn't make it right."

Under the phase-out, residents will still be allowed to put waste at curbside for free pickup. If they choose to bring it to the transfer station themselves, its weight will be reduced from their 600-pound free allowance, as was previously the case.

And once the resident sticker is phased out, the town will likely create a new sticker to allow access to the Warren Town Beach, which is currently included in the dump sticker fee.