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To the Editor:

I would like to commend Treasurer [Cynthia] Edwards for being the only one in the county office with sense enough to realize that the trash fee (TAX) that we citizens are forced to pay is senseless. I have been against this from the start, just as every citizen of this county has, but our elected supervisors refuse to listen to the ones that put them into their position (much like Washington, D.C.). When I have personally questioned these officials about this matter, I only get different excuses from each one of them but no straight answers. I certainly don’t hear that the actual cost has gone down over the years.

I could look at this differently if the county was offering an actual trash service, but to be charged (taxed) to put trash into my vehicle (which has the highest personal property tax in the state being applied to it), burn my gas (which has had taxes paid on when purchased), and use my time to haul it away is absolutely ridiculous. Even worse, I know of multiple citizens who burn their trash and never use the dump sites, but are still required to pay this fee.

The thought of raising other taxes to do away with this one would not actually be doing away with it, that would only hide the money in a sense. We are already paying some of the highest personal property taxes in this area. What is even worse is the fact that our Treasurer mentioned how much of a struggle the budget was for 2020 and is for 2021, yet these same elected officials made sure to give the Country Club another huge chunk of our tax dollars (another issue that most citizens are openly against) to keep their business open while others are struggling. So, thank you, Treasurer Edwards for speaking up for us citizens because we have not been heard on these issues from day 1.

Lee Powell

Courtland