The unlovely sewer tax

Most people don’t really “like” any kind of taxes, although we know that many of them are necessary for the orderly operation of our government and our society. But probably, one of the most “unlovely” and least popular of taxes is our local “sewer service fee.”

Sewers just aren’t pleasant subjects. But consider the alternative of not having them. We just must have a good sanitary sewer system, with costly treatment of sewage, to prevent terrible dangers to human health.

Within the memory of many Chattanoogans, sewage from homes, businesses and factories was simply piped into the Tennessee River, with the hope that dilution would be sufficient to avoid hazards — although our drinking water, swimming, boating, etc., were involved with the Tennessee River.

But necessarily, some decades ago, health considerations required the construction of a big sewage treatment plant on Moccasin Bend. Instead of having raw sewage dumped into the river, it had to go through treatment to minimize health hazards. To pay for it, a sewer service “fee” — most people still think of it as a “tax” — was imposed. For simplicity in collection, it was included on local water bills.

We long have had excellent quality water and good local service at reasonable rates from the Tennessee American Water Co. Since the sewer “tax” and the water service charges have been together on monthly bills, the amount of the sewer fee has been somewhat disguised.

But now to cover the sewer service costs, the Chattanooga City Council has felt it necessary, by a vote of 6-3, to raise the sewer service fee 70 cents per month above the rate of $4.75 per 1,000 gallons of water, that has prevailed since 2003.

Nobody likes any cost increase, of course. But consider the alternative: We surely don’t want sewage released into our community without sufficient sanitary treatment. And we must pay for the treatment to avoid dire results. That’s one of the unavoidable costs of “civilization.”