Tax on toilets seen as a way to curb sprawl

By Associated Press, 3/15/2001 Boston Globe

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) A Democratic legislator from Old Orchard Beach has proposed a tax on toilets as a way to combat sprawl.

Rep. David G. Lemoine has proposed that the state place a tax on every toilet connected to a new septic system installed after Jan. 1, 2002.

The tax would amount to $750 per toilet connected in a private home and $1,000 per toilet or urinal in a commercial or non-residential property.

Toilets connected to septic systems built within municipally designated growth areas would be exempt from the tax.

Lemoine, who co-chaired the Legislature's Task Force to Study Growth Management, said the measure would help equalize the cost of building a septic system with costs incurred by property owners who connect to a municipal sewer system.

He said he hopes the new tax would encourage people to build and live in areas that municipalities are identifying for future population growth.

''I think this is one of the methods we should use in public policy to address the problem of sprawl, because every piece of new construction requires that there be sanitary facilities to occupy them,'' Lemoine said.

He noted that rural residents who use septic systems don't have to pay the same hook-up fees as people living along in-town sewer lines. Those fees run about $1,500, which is how he came up with the $750 tax, assuming two toilets per household.

''I'm trying to equalize the financial disincentive between a designated development area and a more rural area,'' he said.

An official of the Maine State Housing Authority cautioned that Lemoine's proposal, like other growth-management measures, can have a disproportionate effect on poor people and their ability to own a home.

''It's the tradeoff between sprawl or growth management, and affordable housing. We're seeing this come up a number of times,'' said Peter Merrill, director of administration for the MSHA, which has not taken a formal stance on the bill.

Lemoine's bill would allow a municipality to retain 10 percent of the toilet tax to cover the cost of collection. The remainder would go to the state, to be earmarked for municipal infrastructure improvements and efforts to make housing more affordable for the poor.

-- (constipation@DNC.dumper), March 15, 2001

Answers

What a crappy idea! I'm really pissed about this!

-- (ha@ha.ha), March 15, 2001.

-- (p@p.p), March 15, 2001.

No shit!

-- Cherri (jessam5@home.com), March 15, 2001.

Good, maybe the gubmint will finally be able to make Uncle Boob pay his taxes since he spends his whole life on the crapper spewing shit.

-- Uncle Sam (Boob owes @ excessive. toilet taxes), March 15, 2001.

The Democrat philosophy: Tax everything that moves (including bowels).

-- (nemesis@awol.com), March 16, 2001.