Contact us +48 780 151 246

JUDGMENTS OF THE VOIVODESHIP ADMINISTRATIVE COURT (WSA) IN WARSAW ON THE RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CAPITAL CITY OF WARSAW ON WASTE MANAGEMENT FEES

On the 8th July, 2021, at a closed session, The Voivodeship Administrative Court in Warsaw, issued judgments, declaring the invalidity of the provisions of the Council of the Capital City of Warsaw regarding the method of determining the fee for municipal waste management and the rate of such a fee. Due to the fact of a closed session mode of issuing the judgment, the reasons for the decision are currently unknown.

The proceeding was initiated as a result of a complaint filed by the District Prosecutor's Office in Warsaw in connection with the resolution of the Council of the Capital City of Warsaw adopted on the 15th October 2020 No. XXXVIII / 1199/2020 amending the resolution on the method of determining the fee for municipal waste management, determining the rate of such a fee, and determining the rate of fee for a container and a bag with a specific capacity. The prosecutor Aleksandra Skrzyniak pointed out that "In the prepared complaint, he accused the resolution of a significant violation of the law, including the provisions of the Act of September 13, 1996 on maintaining cleanliness and order in municipalities, by using the method of determining the fee for municipal waste management based on the amount used water also to residential real estate, not equipped with a main water meter, not connected to the water supply system or real estate for which there is no relevant data on water consumption ". The prosecutor's office is questioning the setting of the average monthly norm of water consumption by one inhabitant at the level of 4 m3. In the opinion of the complainant, the adopted resolution violates the provisions of the Constitution. In addition, the Prosecutor's Office issued a motion to suspend the implementation of the resolution due to the effects that it may bring for the residents of Warsaw, who will have to pay much higher fees for waste management from 1st March 2021.

The issued judgment is another case pending in front of the Voivodeship Administrative Court in Warsaw regarding resolutions adopted by the Council of the Capital City of Warsaw in terms of fees for waste management. Previously, the Workers housing Association "Praga" appealed against the resolution from 12th December 2019 No. XXIV / 671/2019. The complainant pointed out that the fee would increase from 1st March 2020 for an average of 253% for one household, including for one-person households by as much as 550%. On the 27th of January, 2021, the Voivodeship Administrative Court in Warsaw ruled that the challenged provisions of the resolution were invalid. As significant defects of the resolution, the court indicated, inter alia, the violation of the provisions determining the competence of self-government bodies to adopt resolutions and the violation on behalf to the legal   reference of the adopted resolution. However, he did not share the opinion that the city did not provide reliable data to support the increase. In the opinion of the adjudicating panel, the Warsaw Council, by adopting the new local law, had at its disposal several methods of calculating fees for waste collection: according to the number of residents living in the property, the amount of water used, the area of ​​a given premises per household. As indicated by the court, councilors choosing the last method should not differentiate rates. "The legislator decided that in the case of the household method, a single waste management fee rate should be adopted. The wording […] used as 'one rate' excludes the possibility of differentiating the rate, because this leads to the establishment of two or more rates, which remains in an obvious contradiction to the content of this provision, whereas the Council, in the challenged resolution, established two rates, adopting the type of buildings in which the households are located as an additional criterion.

The Capital of the City Warsaw has announced that it will submit a cassation appeal to the Supreme Administrative Court against all the judgments. The City Council does not agree with the issued judgments, referring to the adoption of resolutions in accordance with applicable regulations. At the same time, it indicated that if the judgments were upheld by the Supreme Administrative Court, it would voluntarily return funds to all residents.

The residents of Warsaw are waiting for a favorable decision of the Court, which will allow them to pay a fees for waste management in the amount applicable before the adoption of the resolutions was made.