All six candidates for Douglas County commissioner attended a forum sponsored by the Roseburg Area Chamber of Commerce. Three of the candidates support creating a new garbage dumping fee at the county landfill and transfer stations: Chris Boice, Mark Garcia, and Dale Rogers. Three candidates oppose a new fee: Jeff Admire, Rita Harris, and Gary Leif (whom I am voting for).
I'm not surprised this topic has come up again for discussion, as Douglas County scrambles to pay for county services amid an ever-declining revenue stream from O and C federal timber lands. What does surprise me is the split on the fee proposal. Both Boice and Garcia are Republicans who proudly use their involvement with the party as a reason to support their candidacies. I thought that the Republican doctrine in general was against the creation of new taxes?
During these tough economic times, I believe it is ludicrous to discuss imposing new taxes on citizens, especially regressive taxes that hit low-income people the hardest. How about creating a new fee at the county libraries or parks? Those fees would be optional, unlike a garbage dumping fee that everyone must pay.
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