HASSO HERING

A perspective from Oregon’s mid-Willamette Valley

A permit to let rainwater drain

Written January 7th, 2018 by Hasso Hering

The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality has published a draft of new regulations to control the discharge of storm runoff by Albany and other towns. Whether this actually cuts down on pollution is hard to predict, but it almost certainly will add to the city’s costs.


Albany may kill rainwater law, for now

Written May 20th, 2016 by Hasso Hering

Albany’s new law setting up a storm water or rain tax utility is on the city council’s Monday work session agenda to be repealed. But even if it is repealed, it likely won’t be gone forever or for long.


Rain tax ? Uncertainty prevails

Written March 23rd, 2016 by Hasso Hering

The rules under which small Oregon towns will have to operate their storm water systems are still in flux, and how costly they will be and what effect they will have on Albany’s eventual rain tax nobody knows.


Rain tax won’t be called that

Written March 5th, 2016 by Hasso Hering

The faint gurgling you hear in the video will soon, in Albany, be the sound of money draining away. Because whether you call it that or not, it’s clear that what the city government is planning is a rain tax by another name.


Rain tax … uh … fee is coming

Written February 8th, 2016 by Hasso Hering

Albany is going with the flow and headed for having a rain tax, although the preferred and more accurate term is “storm water utility fee.” The city’s intent to go ahead on this front was made plain at a work session of the city council Monday afternoon.


Prepping for an Albany “rain tax”

Written January 9th, 2015 by Hasso Hering

In Albany, 2015 may turn out to be the “Year of he Rain Tax.” At least it looks to me as though the city staff is preparing the council to accept the need for more money to deal with runoff during storms. “Rain tax” is my shorthand for some kind of funding mechanism that would pay for […]


A rain tax in Albany’s future?

Written September 11th, 2014 by Hasso Hering

Albany is launching a regulatory program to keep rainwater in new land developments out of storm drains so it doesn’t carry pollution into creeks and rivers. Not now, but sooner or later this is going to cost some money to administer, and when it does, the city may want to collect a monthly stormwater utility […]


 
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