KFI:
Our water bills might go up yet again thanks to the California Legislature. Last week the state Assembly approved a measure that would let local governments charge residents for storm water management systems without voter approval.
SB 231 comes from Democratic Senator Bob Hertzberg (D-Van Nuys), who says that bill will help cities and counties prevent flooding and save water.
We say it violates our right to vote on taxes. Under California law, local fees and taxes are subject to voter approval, but charges relating to “sewer, water, and refuse collection services” are exempt.
So your city could charge you more for sewage treatment plants without your say.
Years ago the CA Republicans managed to force a 2/3 vote on any tax increases. No idea how they managed to do that. Ever since then Dem legislators have done all they could to subvert that law. It has certainly delayed the inevitable. But it is inevitable.
Well, 2 years ago they tried to tax a buddy of mine a tax on the water that went down his rain gutter because they said it got dirty in doing so. Mind you, he had to pay this tax based on the square footage of the roof over his head at his place of business. This was in Simi Valley, CA.
He now operates in Cody, Wyoming and saves approximately 70k a year in business taxes.
Because, FUCK CALIFORNIA.
BTW, not only did he never pay the tax, he billed the offending agency $300 per hour for forcing him to do the research on why they were taxing him in the first place.
They shit themselves when they had a bill arrive from HIM. They dropped the tax request. Problem solved.
Dang, California, I thought y’all were on the cutting edge of this stuff. They’ve been taxing “hard surface runoff” in Roswell, GA for years, both commercial and residential. One more reason I moved.
up next, tax on breathing air
Pretty soon they will confiscate all our money and just give us an allowance like little children. I hate these bastards with a passion.
They managed to get away with this in the Portland area. However, Portland did use the tax money to make rain water go to the rivers instead of overwhelming the sewer system every time it rained. Will be interesting to see if tax is repealed once the whole area is updated.
Have you seen the size of the storm drains in CA? I think storm control in CA has long been paid for and most often just uglifies the terrain. Although they are good for movie sets, for which studios pay a fee.
I think the stuff-our-own-pokets state legislators need to STOP SPENDING. Stop paying criminals to be good! Stop supporting ILLEGALS. Stop stuffing their own coffers. Talk about ‘Robber Barrons’; CA government leaders are pictured in dictionaries, when defining the term, with Jerry Brown, front and center.
Wow – the Baltimore democrats been charging a “flush” tax for Chesapeake Bay for years. Youse guys are behind!
&moochoman…
https://trustfile.avalara.com/blog/the-pennsylvania-sales-tax-on-air/
Dumbicretins don’t need no voter OK to spend their money. Is this robbery, extortion, or tyranny?
If it didn’t sound so much like TEXAS…Commifornia should change the state name to TAX US!
The EPA already puts a levy on rainwater runoff. I won a couple warehouses and it is placed on the electric bill where we live. It is based on how much roof and paved parking lot you own. It runs about $840.00 a year for an acre. Imagine how many acres of roof and paved lot there is in this country. The EPA collects BILLIONS of $. Never forget money is power.
How the FUCK do you levy a tax on something you cannot weigh and measure? Up next, rain water runoff meters, like gas or usable h2o meters already installed, applied to all properties in CA. If I were a state north/northwest of CA and they used those rivers for h2o in CA, especially soCal, Id put a giant meter on the rivers that they aquire h2o from and apply a NJ Turnpike toll on em per cubic foot.
Here in Orygone, ALL water belongs to the state, even the water falling from the sky. Unless, of course it causes flood damage, THAT is an act of Gaia.
Lost in the discussion is the fact that many of the things California is proposing to pay for through additional taxes are things the government should be financially responsible for in the first place. Things like sewer and storm drain systems, for instance. But liberal politicians being the reptiles that they are are busy using that money for pie-in-the-sky welfare programs and pork barrel projects, and presto – money that should have been used for infrastructure is mysteriously gone.
If you sent your kid to the store for milk and bread and he came home with neither, you would ask “where did that $5 I gave you go?” But we don’t ask our politicians this simple question; we just blindly accept their claim that they need more money. Your kid probably blew the money on candy, which is actually an improvement over what politicians piss money away on.
@Mighty Mojo, when I was a police officer in Long Beach, I boarded my horse in North Long Beach(bordered Compton) and I used to ride the LA flood control trail. Not exactly scenic and I was always CCW. Kind of an Urban Cowgirl. 🤠🐎At least my horse became “bomb proof” riding that trail.
@cowgirl: That’s funny. I used to ride my dirt bike along the LA “river” channel in the SF valley. 50+ years ago.
I live in an eastern state, on acreage that was annexed by the city about 20 years ago but they didn’t bring services along with their higher taxes. All water to my property comes from the spring on it –and tastes better than the city water.
A few years back, the city enacted a stormwater management ‘fee’ and added it to the utility bills. That’s when they created a utility account for me and started billing me $6/month. When I neglected to pay it, I got automatic notices threatening to shut my water off. Good luck with that. The spring has been running steadily since the settlers stopped here in 1790. And since it’s not a ‘tax,’ the city couldn’t put a lien on my local or state tax accounts either.
Go outside, feel that sunshine? Be a shame if you lost it…….