Nowhere for the water to go… but another tax will fix it!
(Thanks to “thewhiterabbit” for the news tip)
Closely watching events in Virginia, I missed this story here in my home state: New Jersey Democrats–having just upped the minimum wage to $15 an hour–are looking to enact a “rain tax” (https://www.nj.com/news/2019/02/some-call-it-a-rain-tax-but-it-could-help-nj-fight-floods-and-stop-pollution.html).
Cross the weather off the list of things you thought the Democrats would never tax.
What they want to do is set up a “stormwaters utility” that would assess property owners according to how much of their property is paved over. When it rains, the water can’t soak through the pavement and so wends its way into our streams, our bays, etc., picking up all sorts of pollutants–like herbicides–on the way.
So they want to solve a problem that they created in the first place by paving over every square foot that wasn’t paved over already.
Uh, solution to excessive runoff and ensuing pollution… Stop paving!
If you think this report is a satire–well, it’s not. Republicans are already predicting the next caper will be a snow tax.
In my home town, the disease of building is reaching a crescendo. Vacant lot full of gorgeous wild tulips? Pave it! Put up another high-rise! Imagine the number of people we can jam into this little space, if we just stack them on top of one another! ‘Cause the more people you’ve got crowded into your town, the bigger a big-shot you can be in the Democrat Party. And the more people you’ve got available to tax! It’s going to look like a set from The Hunger Games by the time they’re done with it.
But what do they care? They can afford to wall off their mansions and swimming pools against the unpleasantness outside.