[ OUR OPINION ]

Trash collection fee just
another name for tax hike

THE ISSUE A proposed garbage pickup fee has become another way for the city to raise revenue.

WHAT was once an $8-a-month optional trash collection fee tied to Mayor Harris's recycling program had evolved into a new way of taxing some city residents, but it appears prudent thinking may prevail.

Instead of wrangling about charging for garbage pickup, the mayor and City Council should adjust property tax rates -- which will likely increase anyway -- to cover this and other basic city services.

If more money is needed to pay for such operations as fire safety and the prosecutor's office, it should be raised through property taxes, which equitably distributes the burden to all who will benefit. Disguising a revenue stream by calling it a fee makes no sense, especially because administering the toll will no doubt add to the cost of city functions.

The $8 figure emerged when Harris proposed a sensible program in which one of two weekly trash collections would be devoted to recyclable materials, such as paper, plastic and glass. If residents wanted two regular trash pickups, they could opt to pay $8 per month.

The proposal proved problematic as the mayor and Council members debated a host of community concerns from public health to extra garbage bins. This led to Council chairman Gary Okino floating a proposal to charge the $8 fee to all households with automated trash pickup. Now the plan is for everyone with automated or manual collection service -- except for apartment and condominium residents -- to pay the fee whether or not the Council accepts the recycling program.

The mayor wants to use the money to cover the gaps in his proposed $1.2 billion budget. From the estimated $16 million that would be raised, he would pay for mediated increases in firefighter salaries and for operations of the prosecutor's office, among other expenses.

However, since all city residents -- condo and single-family homeowners alike -- benefit from these services, the garbage fee is an unfair way to raise revenue. Although some condominiums don't get city trash collections because their developers chose not to provide space adequate for garbage trucks to maneuver, their property tax rates as currently proposed would decrease 4.6 percent while single-family homes would see a rise of 2.7 percent. Assessing a separate fee for garbage pickup will surely increase paperwork and managing costs for the city.

It appears the fee will be trashed with Council budget chairwoman Ann Kobayashi saying she'll throw the idea in the heap. However, Okino still wants the fee kept on the table.

No politician likes to raise taxes, but instead of tinkering with fees that really amount to taxes, the Council and the mayor must distribute the load to taxpayers evenly and taxpayers should realize that the services they want come with a price tag.