KRMG In-Depth: Tree services in Tulsa unregulated, unlicensed - but essentially subsidized

The city of Tulsa has no requirements for a tree trimming or removal business to be licensed, bonded, or insured.

The city also provides those businesses with an extremely low-cost solution for ridding themselves of green waste, which is paid for by taxpayers.

[ Hear the KRMG In-Depth report on tree services in Tulsa HERE ]

Todd Rickert, who owns one of the largest tree services in the region, tells KRMG he went to the most recent meeting of the Tulsa Authority for the Recovery of Energy, also known as the TARE Board, to bring these issues to the city’s attention.

“I explained to the board that every time that my truck shows up, that I cost them several hundreds of dollars,” Rickert told KRMG. “And we do that multiple times per day, and it just doesn’t really make sense that they allow, or encourage, contractors like me and hundreds of others to, you know, abuse the taxpayer’s dollar in my opinion.”

Rickert argues that the city charges contractors $16 to dump a load of green waste, when they should charge at least ten times that much, in order to allow them to have the money to properly maintain equipment and stay fully staffed.

All that dumping has also made it very difficult for citizens who want to dump much smaller loads, but often wait for an hour or two just to get in to the facility.

Rickert suggests the city charge full price for contractors - a move which would cost him as much as $300,000 a year - and he’s also strongly urging the city to do something about regulating his industry.

Licensing, in his opinion, “brings up the level of professionalism and it makes sure that, you know, people have the right insurance to do the work.”

Currently, employees or subcontractors are essentially on their own in the event of injury or death if the business owner isn’t insured or bonded, and the homeowner where such an incident occurs could also face potential liability.

Rickert tells KRMG the TARE board was essentially receptive to his ideas, and he plans to continue advocating for reforms he thinks will save a lot of taxpayer money, as well as make things safer for the public - as well as for the workers themselves.