You may recall how we all kicked and protested when we heard about the $14 garbage pickup fee. (I recall vividly.) And how one politician practically put her whole platform on removing that fee.
Well, we still have the fee and if the city of Tucson has its way, we’ll have more soon enough. Those of us who live in urban infill will be supporting others in far flung places.
Get a petition and get it signed by like minded folks. Fight back! No more water fees! The deadline is drawing near to get signatures.
This article appears in Jun 14-20, 2007.
I’d like to just reiterate that this is Karyn’s position, not necessarily the position of the Weekly. We have not taken a position on this initiative. Personally, while I agree the Dems who made it a big campaign deal—and did nothing—kinda suck for doing that, I am opposed to this ballot initiative. We have far more important things to worry about than the $14 a month fee, and the organizers of this petition drive have not answered to my satisfaction how the city will make up for that lost revenue. Our roads and police protection are already subpar; repealing the fee will only make that worse.
JB is exactly right: The city needs to invest more money in cops and streets, not less. Burglaries are rampant in my neighborhood–the guy down the street got ripped off between 9 a.m. and noon last Thursday. Even the Democrats who campaigned against the fee know we need it–and probably did when they they were bitching about how the no-good Republicans raised your taxes, blah blah bullshit. Yeah, I know it’s a shame that we have to pay to have our trash hauled away, just like just about everyone in the Western United States. But if we want to fund social programs like KidsCo for all parents in the community regardless of income, expand our parks, fix the long-neglected potholes, etc., etc., then we’re going to have to shell out a big ol’ $14 a month. (Unless we qualify for a pretty generous exemption that’s available to the truly needy.)
But your mileage may differ, so why not have a blog challenge: If you don’t like the garbage fee, how would you shave $20 million out of the city budget? If you want to review the document, it’s available at http://www.cityoftucson.org.
It’s too bad that the garbage fee isn’t pro-rated by how much garbage you make. I buy foods using my own grocery sack and refillable containers, purchasing staple materials like oats and fresh veggies rather than over-packaged, highly processed products (like “Lunchables”). I shred paper products and use many of them them for fire kindling during winter months. Biodegradables are used as mulch. As a result my garbage loads are usually quite small. Most weeks, the garbage truck could skip my house without a problem.
Maybe garbage trucks should be like the postal service, only stopping at homes that put the “flag” up on their dumpsters. Maybe we should pay to “stamp” our garbage. There could be Commemorative Garbage Stamps featuring great garbage makers in history, such as Roger Corman.
Refresh my memory: What happened to the proposal to integrate a lottery into the voting system? Or was that a hoax all along?
What are the the voting statistics in Tucson? What percent of eligible voters actually hit the polls, and how is that represented demographically?
When I was going to U of A, I was pretty much a lame-ass who didn’t know how to vote, or where, or anything else. Maybe it’s easier for college-age people now that all the information is internet available, but I still think the Tucson Weekly should print a cartoony, idiot-friendly “Tucson voting for dummies” guide: “So You’re a Drooling Idiot….You Can Still Vote!” type of thing.
Just an idea.
Beef Baloney: They do print a voting for dummies-type thing. You can even cut it out and bring it with you to the polls. And since it’s Tucson, it is automatically “cartoony.”
As for shaving $20 billion off the budget, here’s what we should do: water SHOULD be more expensive. That way, fewer people would waste it on stupid, non-native, water-hogging plants. And I also like the charging different amounts for garbage idea, although that would sort of be a nightmare to figure out, yes? Esp. for those of us who share alley garbage cans with people who like to fill it with things like old printers.
As a county resident, I think those that whine about a $14 a month garbage fee are self centered with little actual ability to see this issue logically. I pay $26 a month for garbage service that includes an extra $4 or $5 dollars for recycling service. City residents get a brush and bulky pickup several times a year. I have to haul it myself to the dump. Garbage pickup is an expensive service and land fill maintenance is even more expensive. Why should the residents of Tucson be the only ones in the State who get it free? And why should other city services suffer because some people want free trash service? Whether there’s a fee or not, it still costs the same. The city residents are getting a great deal and still they whine!
Think again if you feel the need to throw away to the alley an old cursive…there’s no such thing as a free lunch.