By Blake Deshazo | The Selma Times-Journal

After more than 1,300 customers had garbage service suspended by Sea Coast Disposal earlier this month, the number of delinquent accounts has fallen by more than 10 percent.

According to Terry Hendricks with Sea Coast Disposal, 538 customers were removed from the list of delinquent accounts.

“I am down to 763 customers right now that are suspended,” Hendricks said. “They are steadily declining.”

The company services 4,872 customers in Selma. Before the cutoff was announced, 32 percent of customers were not paying for service. After the cutoff was announced that number fell to 26 percent.

As it stands, Hendricks said the number of delinquent accounts is down to 15.6 percent.

While service has been cut off for those customers, Hendricks said the company has not collected the carts yet.

“We were kind of hoping that they would come in and pay, so we wouldn’t have to pick up all of their carts,” Hendricks said. “But if it doesn’t work that way, we’re going to have to start doing that shortly.”

A date has not been set yet for carts to be removed, but Hendricks said he plans to meet with Stephen Hendrieth, the waste accounts coordinator for the city, to discuss it.

“We’ve been working kind of close with him to get all of this in the works,” Hendricks said.

The company has used automatic phone calls and its Facebook page to let delinquent customers know how to pay their bills and get off the suspended list.

“We got a pretty decent response, we really did,” Hendricks said.

Some of the accounts are delinquent from when Sea Coast first took over, while others are more recent.

The total amount of money owed to Sea Coast was at $112,000 in early September, but has dropped to $70,968, according to Hendricks.

Hendricks said the city has been helpful in supporting the company’s decision to cut off delinquent customers and contacting customers that have yet to sign up for service.

According to Hendrieth, roughly 600 households in the city have yet to sign up for garbage service.

“I go out and try to physically contact people, going door to door,” Hendrieth said. “My main concern, of course, is those people who have not bothered to sign up at all.”

Hendrieth said at least 35 households have been turned in to code enforcement for refusing to sign up for service.

“I try to get the word out. I give people every opportunity in the world,” Hendrieth said. “I work with them any way I can. It’s not all about going out and writing citations.”

Hendricks said anyone who has not receive a bill can call the Selma office at 874-7320.