You may have heard us reporting it, but you are sure to be hearing more about it.
And while you may not like the idea, it may be picking up steam since the devastating and damaging floods in several San Diego communities 11 days ago.
The San Diego Union Tribune headline calls it, “A new tax for flooding fixes.”
The head of the San Diego City Council is pushing for a water quality tax to pay for flood prevention, anti-pollution efforts and improvements to the city’s stormwater system.
This idea was dropped in 2022, because city officials thought it wouldn’t be approved by city voters. So now council president Sean Elo-Rivera wants it on the election ballot this November. It will need two-thirds approval, so it won’t be easy getting it passed.
But he says the need for this has been around for years, long before last week’s damaging floods.
As Elo-Rivera puts it, “We’re relying on an underfunded, outdated 20th century stormwater system to meet 21st century challenges and protect lives and property — and it’s getting worse every year.”
The hundreds of people in the communities who have damaged or destroyed homes certainly know that. And you’ve heard many of them say that they’ve complaining about the flood control channels and storm drains for years.
Sometimes it takes a disaster for something to happen and this may be one of those times.
(Photo local reporting partner 10News)