General Discussion

WillowTree

(5,350 posts)

106. You think trash collection should be free? Really?

Sun Sep 20, 2015, 03:53 AM

Sep 2015

Then how do the guys who man the trucks get paid? Or the ones who maintain the trucks? Or the people who work in the offices that support those who actually do the collections? For that matter, how do the trucks get paid for? Or the gas that they run on?

Where on earth do people get the idea that anything is or should be "free"? Everything has to be paid for somehow.

"Tax money should do it." Well that's simple then. Just raise everyone's taxes by $114/year and then it'll be "free".

The cold, hard fact is that the City isn't collecting enough in taxes to continue to cover everything that has been financed by the current tax pool anymore, so the choices are to either charge a separate fee for refuse collection or raise the taxes by a commensurate amount to cover it. This isn't rocket science.

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Emanuel to ask residents to pay $9.50 monthly Chicago garbage bill? [View all] KamaAina Sep 2015 OP

What's wrong with a sanitation levy? Renew Deal Sep 2015 #1

if you're paying taxes & pickup is on the city, it's double dipping to charge more wordpix Sep 2015 #95

Let's arrange to have all the garbage dumped at Rahm's mansion Pope Sweet Jesus Sep 2015 #2

Welcome to DU! KamaAina Sep 2015 #4

I drive by Rahm's house every day alcibiades_mystery Sep 2015 #70

I have never had free pickup. forthemiddle Sep 2015 #3

I never paid for it directly until I moved to CA. Gormy Cuss Sep 2015 #15

it's never free hollysmom Sep 2015 #54

When I lived in LA MurrayDelph Sep 2015 #75

Indeed. In our part of Oregon, you choose your garbage hauler and pay for the service. Shrike47 Sep 2015 #103

well, if you call taxpayer support "free" then we have it here in New Haven. CTyankee Sep 2015 #84

Hmmm...my city adds a garbage fee to my water bill - and they are Dems. jonno99 Sep 2015 #5

i wasnt ever "free" you paid for it with taxes now what youre doing is paying for it twice saturnsring Sep 2015 #55

Chicago was the only place I ever lived with free garbage pickup MohRokTah Sep 2015 #6

Cheaper than my city Retrograde Sep 2015 #7

I pay over $50 per month. Nye Bevan Sep 2015 #8

About half of what we pay in the Chicago suburbs. Gidney N Cloyd Sep 2015 #9

I always got a water bill about the same time as the real estate tax bill. greatauntoftriplets Sep 2015 #20

Is the water bill a flat rate? My vague recollection is that city houses don't have water meters. Gidney N Cloyd Sep 2015 #24

I never knew how it was figured, but I didn't have a water meter. greatauntoftriplets Sep 2015 #25

some do some dont. mopinko Sep 2015 #29

I pay for mine. I have never lived any place where it was a free service. Throd Sep 2015 #10

That's because in no place is it free or ever has been. former9thward Sep 2015 #47

$11 a month here in SW Virginia. It's added to the water bill, so there's no escaping it. Buns_of_Fire Sep 2015 #11

charge by the pound. the biggest wasters pay more. do they have seperate for recyclables? nt msongs Sep 2015 #12

My city in Japan has a good system for trash pick-up Art_from_Ark Sep 2015 #76

In my town... bobclark86 Sep 2015 #13

They get it free now? MineralMan Sep 2015 #14

I assume it was paid for through local taxes, which have not been raised. No government madinmaryland Sep 2015 #56

I don't pay for ohheckyeah Sep 2015 #16

You are lucky passiveporcupine Sep 2015 #69

We also can go anytime ohheckyeah Sep 2015 #71

I live in Chicagoland, Cook County suburb and... Freethinker65 Sep 2015 #17

It's free? LittleBlue Sep 2015 #18

Its not free. former9thward Sep 2015 #49

I have no problem with this and it isn't really republican. NCTraveler Sep 2015 #19

God help they tax rich people to make up the revenue loss. nt valerief Sep 2015 #27

I fully agree with you and that is a part of my post. NCTraveler Sep 2015 #41

I don't Agee. Poor make garbage too yeoman6987 Sep 2015 #104

The city is broke. AngryAmish Sep 2015 #21

How did the city go broke? Rex Sep 2015 #22

By not having enough revenue to match the expenses. AngryAmish Sep 2015 #23

And why have they not raised enough revenue? KamaAina Sep 2015 #28

Taxes have not been raised in a long time AngryAmish Sep 2015 #30

because some people think tax is a 4 letter word. mopinko Sep 2015 #31

So what caused that to happen or do you not know? Rex Sep 2015 #32

Never seeing past the next election, mostly. AngryAmish Sep 2015 #33

Much of it done by the Daley administration, too, IMO. greatauntoftriplets Sep 2015 #34

Thanks, so they drew from the well until it was bone dry. Rex Sep 2015 #35

Because children can't vote. Throd Sep 2015 #44

Compound interest is not intuitive AngryAmish Sep 2015 #61

And this is not unusual in largecities nadinbrzezinski Sep 2015 #66

Chicagoan here as well...we need to raise revenue alcibiades_mystery Sep 2015 #72

Just what the privatizers want. Wonder how much they'll have to pay for the fire dept. nt valerief Sep 2015 #26

I'm worried that Chi town is going to go the way of Detroit. nt Rex Sep 2015 #36

If we don't get Republicans out of our govt, it'll be every city in the nation. nt valerief Sep 2015 #37

Very depressing but the absolute truth, they are all self-destructing and taking us with them. nt Rex Sep 2015 #38

Chicago and Detroit are Republican bastions. Throd Sep 2015 #45

Chicago hasnt had a republican mayor in over 80 years Travis_0004 Sep 2015 #50

Ummm...Ok - but sadly Ram is a dem...nt jonno99 Sep 2015 #57

Corporate dem, not a progressive. valerief Sep 2015 #67

republicans? Can be blamed for a lot but not Detroit or Chicago yeoman6987 Sep 2015 #105

The Department of Streets and Sanitation is not a private entity alcibiades_mystery Sep 2015 #73

Nothing to do with privatization 1939 Sep 2015 #78

I live in the state of New York, and the amount I pay for the fire department is specifically listed PoliticAverse Sep 2015 #79

It should be part of property taxes, not a separate fee. valerief Sep 2015 #114

In Milw suburb fire protection fee is on water bill...it's $11 and change per month HereSince1628 Sep 2015 #108

We (can) haul our own to the dump. PotatoChip Sep 2015 #39

Garbage pickup comes out of taxes now, so it isn't "free" hedgehog Sep 2015 #40

Exactly. I can't believe people are saying it's free. pintobean Sep 2015 #43

This fee actually wouldn't be a flat tax, it would be a regressive tax. Shoulders of Giants Sep 2015 #83

Thank you for clarfying that. You are right that it's a greater burden on the poor. hedgehog Sep 2015 #85

I have paid for garbage pickup for decades and doc03 Sep 2015 #42

I pay more than that to have my garbage and recycleables Ilsa Sep 2015 #46

In the pre metro days garbage was paid out of taxes in the city and privatized in the county TheKentuckian Sep 2015 #48

Is this a TIF issue? surrealAmerican Sep 2015 #51

Free? Should be but isnt most places. see how they get us used to paying for shit randys1 Sep 2015 #52

Cities can't print tax money. former9thward Sep 2015 #99

You think trash collection should be free? Really? WillowTree Sep 2015 #106

I hate Emanuel but he is no worse than Mayor Daley... Stellar Sep 2015 #53

Costs me more than that! I've never heard of it being free. They should pay up - it's a service. Lil Missy Sep 2015 #58

They are paying for it. It's one of the city services paid by property taxes. n/t Gormy Cuss Sep 2015 #60

Property taxes will go up, too alcibiades_mystery Sep 2015 #74

Disaggregating services allows city governments more flexibility in raising prices Gormy Cuss Sep 2015 #90

Privatizing Streets and Sanitation will cause an all out war in Chicago alcibiades_mystery Sep 2015 #97

Although condo users and apartments have had to pay for a while Travis_0004 Sep 2015 #80

"pay up" LeftOfWest Sep 2015 #107

That's not bad. I pay $17.00 a month here in Arkansas. LiberalArkie Sep 2015 #59

We pay ours every month on our water bill Omaha Steve Sep 2015 #62

I don't know what the problem is. Snobblevitch Sep 2015 #63

Wring every dollar out working folks bastard. lonestarnot Sep 2015 #64

Many cities, both blue and red, charge for it nadinbrzezinski Sep 2015 #65

This post makes no sense. I pay $17 a month. Like I do for... Logical Sep 2015 #68

We'd be happy to pay $9.50 a month. blue neen Sep 2015 #77

I wish mine was only $9.50 a month. xmas74 Sep 2015 #81

In general, I'm opposed to governments gaining money through fees instead of taxes. Shoulders of Giants Sep 2015 #82

You got it. KamaAina Sep 2015 #87

Exactly. Gormy Cuss Sep 2015 #91

I just looked at my water bill and the garbage part of the bill is around $13. Waldorf Sep 2015 #86

Oh my god! Paying for a service is just wrong!!11 REP Sep 2015 #88

Sounds cheap to me. In our area, they are trying to encourage recycling, pnwmom Sep 2015 #89

Excuse me? I'd be THRILLED to have a mere $9.50/month payment. Not every municipality has PUBLIC WinkyDink Sep 2015 #92

true, my town is charged by the ton and charges taxpayers accordingly wordpix Sep 2015 #96

Rahm is a corrupt asshole whether or not this particular action is justified yurbud Sep 2015 #93

Lucky them. Our's is $30 and month which includes jwirr Sep 2015 #94

Chicago has recycling alcibiades_mystery Sep 2015 #98

Good to hear. I think the point to the garbage tax is jwirr Sep 2015 #100

I pay almost that much in rural West Virginia tabasco Sep 2015 #101

In our Chicago suburb we pay about $20 a month. These complaints fall on deaf ears from me... tritsofme Sep 2015 #102

I'm actually supportive of per-unit/item pricing for trash disposal... Chan790 Sep 2015 #109

The city has system for having special pickups for hazardous stuff... CTyankee Sep 2015 #110

My trash bill is more than that. craigmatic Sep 2015 #111

Our area pays $5.50 a month, on the utilitys bill, we all have wells for water. oneshooter Sep 2015 #112

In St. Paul, MN, trash collection is done by private MineralMan Sep 2015 #113