Two South Los Angeles businessmen sued the City of Los Angeles last week, alleging in a class action that the recycLA trash collection program amounts to an unauthorized tax that illegally brought more than $15 million into the city’s general fund.

In a lawsuit filed June 14 in Los Angeles County Superior Court, plaintiffs Frederick Leeds of Fred Leeds Properties in Leimert Park and Malcolm Bennett of South Los Angeles allege the city failed to follow the mandate of the taxation-restricting Proposition 218 when it launched recycLA last year.

RecycLA created an exclusive system for the private hauling of waste and garbage from certain multifamily and commercial units. The government-approved monopoly system was intended to reduce garbage truck emissions by having one trash-hauling company selected for each of 11 zones in the city.

RecycLA has received a torrent of criticism from building owners about uncollected garbage, and trash collection bills that have doubled or tripled since its July 2017 launch.

The city has characterized the waste hauling costs as a franchise fee. The plaintiffs allege it amounts to an illegal tax that is born by landlords and tenants.

“The road to hell is paved with good intentions and this is an example of exactly that,” said Brian Kabateck, a partner at the downtown law firm of Kabateck Brown Kellner. “This is a thinly-veiled – if not-veiled-at-all – tax.”

City representatives did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Proposition 218 was a ballot initiative passed by California voters in 1996. It amended the California constitution by requiring voter approval before local taxes are increased. It also bans property-related fees for general government services, including police and fire.

Leeds, who owns hundreds of properties in Los Angeles County, told the Business Journal that the program “makes it far more difficult for me to offer affordable housing” because the waste hauling fees are passed on to his tenants.

Garbage disposal costs at some of his properties such as 2329-2405 S. Corning St. in Mid-City have gone up 400 percent, Leeds said.

Bennett, whose International Realty and Investments company manages properties for owners throughout the city, said owners are getting billed for things such as having their trash bins rolled down the driveway and for using a remote control to open garages to haul away trash.

Kabateck’s firm, along with Ervin Cohen & Jessup of Beverly Hills and downtown’s Kellner Law Group, represents the plaintiffs.