California wants to impose a tax on drinking water

Фото: Depositphotos

For the first time in history, residents of the state of California will pay a tax on drinking water, 95 cents per month. This legislative measure should help repair hundreds of public water supplies and solve the problem of unsafe tap water. Residents of rural California are mainly affected by this problem.

The Senate bill number 623 over the next 15 years will generate $ 2 billion, which will be used to clean polluted groundwater and repair water systems and wells in the state.

The bill number XXUMX is considered by legislators for several months. On Monday, a revised version was considered, which included tax amendments for households and enterprises. According to the bill, farmers and dairy producers will pay about $ 623 million per year to cover the costs of water treatment affected by fertilizers and chemicals that are used in farming. Other types of businesses will pay about $ 30 per month.

The revised bill needs two-thirds of the votes in each county in California. Nevertheless, Bill Monning, the author of the bill, succeeded in creating a strong alliance of farmers and environmental groups. The bill also supports at least one Republican - Senator Andy Vidak, he said that the Hanford, Fresno and Bakersfield areas are the epicenter of the problem with drinking water.

Opponents of the bill believe that the additional tax is not needed, and to solve the problem with contaminated drinking water it is enough to use money from the state general-purpose fund.

However, Monning argues that fund money will not be enough to solve the problem. According to him, the current tax on households is approximately $ 11,40 per year and it is negligible. This September 1 bill should be considered by the budget committee and allowed for consideration at a higher legislative level.

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