Triskadekaphobia: We're For It

One local blogger coined the appelation of "Open Air Museum of Superstition and Ignorance" for our fair city. It couldn't be more appropriate, then, that Friday the 13th approaches, a day when triskadekaphobia (fear of the number 13) reaches its pinnacle.

For once, the progressive movement in New Albany needs to cultivate, foster, and nurture a fear of the number 13. But unlike the forces of regress, we aren't trying to grow an unreasoned fear.

For 13 is how many times more expensive it is to the taxpayers of this city to use edit funds to subsidize sewer rates. It takes more than $13 in EDIT money to knock $1 off the sewer rate. That's right.

The council members plotting to arrest a coming sewer rate increase talk loudly and often about how they are looking out for nickels and dimes, how they are watching the corporate purse, but their plan is exactly the opposite of financial prudence.

Instead of investing our tax money into projects that will save us money (New Albany's atrocious roads cost the average driver $800 a year more than residents of the average American city - $800 in lower mileage from misaligned wheels, damaged tires, and wholesale destruction of the working and resale value of our cars), they want to spend it on recurring individual rate-payer expenses. To some extent, sewer rates can be elastic. Yes, there is a minimum charge. We've often spoken in favor of keeping the minimum charge low (thus giving a boost to those who use the least water) and making up the difference in higher rates.

But no, that would actually accomplish something. That would actually protect the proverbial "fixed-income" resident from unwelcome added expenses.

However, it's worse than that. While robbing the city coffers to try to fool the voters, while robbing New Albany of any hope of having its sewer utility operate on its own without tax subsidies, and while stripping the city of any ability to invest in infrastructure, this crazy plan will take money from New Albany taxpayers and transfer it directly to the biggest users of the system.

That's right. This plan removes incentives to conserve water, especially for businesses (who don't pay EDIT taxes), since the taxpayer will pick up part of the bill.

It's ironic that when anyone proposes actual targeted investments to give incentives to business practices, types of businesses, or specific locations, the hidebound council members howl "corporate welfare." And yet, their plan is an enormous piece of corporate and business pork.

If we had more respect for their ability to ratiocinate, we'd suspect they are in the pocket of big businesses. But we presume that they just don't see it, and since the only people speaking up about it are THEM people, they feel certain they can proceed with this foolish plan.

They've done it before and it looks like they're going to try to do it again.

There's another set of sewer ratepayers who will be sharing in this subsidy, too. The several thousand ratepayers who live outside the city (and who do not pay EDIT taxes into the city) who will receive 150% of the subsidy city residents would "receive."

Now one can argue that they shouldn't be paying 150% of what we do. But if this plan goes through, they'll be getting 150% of the discount, too.

We'd estimate that when it comes to comparing the typical residence in New Albany versus those in the fringe and those in Georgetown, 40% of the subsidy to residences will be going to people who don't pay EDIT taxes.

Drop the subsidy now. Stop diverting our investable tax money (originally designed for economic development purposes) to prop up the checking accounts of businesses and ratepayers outside the city.

Stop trying to fool the people that you are looking out for their best interests. Just stop.

If you truly want to help the poorest among us to deal with rising costs of living, propose a subsidy directly to those taxpayers. Craft a solution and gather the support for direct subsidies to specific ratepayers. At least then the debate will be honest.