Phoenix wants to double the fee it charges retailers to collect abandoned shopping carts. When Phoenix launched its shopping cart retrieval programa decade ago, it was designed to pay for itself, but in the last fiscal year, the city reported it recovered only 28 percent of expenses.
Retailers are doing a better job of managing their carts: the city collected almost 10,000 carts in 2007, compared to more than 2,700 last year. The number of billable carts has decreased by 80 percent since 2012-2013.
According to a city report, approximately 35,500 carts have been retrieved from sidewalks, streets and neighborhoods over the past 10 years, which has reduced resident complaints and removed blight from the community.
Currently, retailers pay $25 for each abandoned cart the city collects. This week, the council is scheduled to vote on raising it to $50.
Update: The Phoenix City Council approved doubling the shopping cart retrieval fee at Wednesday's meeting.
