COUNTY: Fee or tax?

I recently asked a county commissioner about the illegal fee the county commissioners allow the aquifer protection district to levy against most of the property in the county. I explained how the fee isn’t reasonably related to a service provided to each property, and that because the money collected is used for a public benefit, it is actually a tax that they call a fee. Their biggest problem is that they can’t collect a tax, because the state law that allows an aquifer protection district prohibits the collection of a tax.

The commissioner had the rubber stamp team of legal beagles from the prosecutor’s office look at it, and the answer came back that it is clear: Government is allowed to collect a fee. This was never in doubt, as the question was whether or not the “fee” was a disguised tax, prohibited by state law. Since it obviously is, they just answered a different question. Because they think people are stupid enough to not realize they didn’t answer the question.

Seems like there is a saying about getting the government we deserve….

LAWRENCE SPENCER

Post Falls