If it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck

Then it's a duck right?

Not if you're referring to Mayor White's proposed Waste Reduction "Fee".

(from Matt Stiles of the Chron)

Houston households would pay a monthly $3.50 "waste reduction fee" and eventually would have their heavy trash picked up only twice a year, under a mayoral task force proposal presented Monday to the City Council.

Insisting the new charge — of $42 annually — was not a "garbage fee," task force members told the council that the levy on 450,000 households would increase conservation and boost efficiency in the city's solid-waste practices.

The fee, which would be new for Houston, would generate as much as $19 million that could be used to enhance recycling, launch new conservation efforts and pay for more enforcement of illegal dumping, according to the task force.

So its a "fee" on garbage pickup, but it's not a "garbage fee".

Got that?

Obviously there's some confusion on City Council as well:

"I don't think a fee is going to be a problem," Councilwoman Toni Lawrence said. "You just have to educate, and people understand. If they're getting something in return, I see a lot of cooperation on this."

Councilman Michael Berry, however, suggested the idea would be a tough sell, particularly the recommendations for reducing heavy trash collections.

"All I hear is less service, higher cost," he said. "It's very hard for me to justify that that's not true."

Charge more, offer less. That seems to be the long term strategy for local Government.


Other eyes:

BlogHouston

KTRK 13 Political Blog (Miya Shay)

Slampo's Place