Home of Today’s Common Sense

Published - Brownsvile Herald December11,2005
The election is over and the comparatively large voter interest, for an election with no candidates, that has been engendered by the confabulation and rumor in the community, over the Public Utilities Board has demonstrated to me that the numbers of informed citizens who care, are growing and becoming more active.
Unfortunately, however you voted, much of the problem is still there; the “city rulers” are essentially still in control of PUB and have the opportunity to use that power to further personal agendas rather than act in the best interests of “Us Folks”.
In the final days of the voting period a “gang of five” also know as “Citizens for Continued Growth” published a not so accurate 1/3rd page advertisement (not cheap) in the Brownsville Herald describing the impact fee as a tax.
As I understand it an impact fee is just that, a fee to reimburse PUB and help finance the costs of additional infrastructure and other expenses needed to provide the additional service required by the new home. Since PUB is city owned, one could consider it a tax; in that context all utility charges would be considered local taxes. I wonder if IRS would also consider them taxes if they were deducted on my tax return!
What is a tax is the $8 million or so in cash and services that PUB provided its city benefactors. Since we the people are paying for them; that is indeed a tax.
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