Endorsement: Ela Township referendum

Voters in Ela Township are being asked if they want the township to accept bids on the contract for township garbage collection services in unincorporated areas.

Residents would not be able to choose another garbage hauler other than the service negotiated by the township, but they would have the choice of opting out. A commercial property within unincorporated Ela Township would not be bound to use the township's contracted trash services.

Residents in unincorporated areas would still be billed directly by a company for services such as garbage pickup, disposal and recycling, and would not see a tax increase with approval of this proposal. But they could find their garbage pickup bill going down as a benefit of bidding out garbage collection services.

We recommend a yes vote in the interest of the potential savings in garbage collection for those in unincorporated areas.

Due to an clerical error, this issue did not make it onto the official Feb. 5 ballot. The 3,737 eligible voters in the township will receive a separate pink ballot to make their choice on Election Day.