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Tax upon tax, now toilet tax
View(s):With tax upon tax being imposed on the people, the Colombo Municipal Council is planning to charge a sewerage tax to raise funds to repay a loan it obtained from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to rehabilitate the city’s sewerage pipeline network.
A discussion on this tax was held at Amaya Lake Resort in Dambulla yesterday with the participation of CMC members, senior staff and ADB officials.
Mayor A.J.M. Muzammil who took part in the meeting told the Sunday Times the council was making a huge investment in the renovation of the sewage and waste water system and needed to ensure that this project was economically viable. “We are considering the possibility of imposing a tax. It will not be a burden on the people. We are investing in the long term interests of city residents,” he said.
The proposed project is estimated to cost Rs. 31 billion. About 82 per cent of the ADB loan will be repaid by the Government and the rest, amounting to Rs. 6.5 billion, by the CMC within 25 years at a two per cent interest. The CMC wants to impose a tax on 80 per cent of the quantity of water consumed by each household. The CMC is also looking at introducing different user categories to differentiate between residential and commercial taxpayers. The tax will be added to the water bill.
The existing sewerage system releases untreated sewerage to the sea from Mattakkuliya and Wellawatte.“Under central government regulations we will have to stop this by 2020. If we are to stop this we need to urgently renovate and establish treatment facilities. The project under the ADB will facilitate this,” the Municipal Treasurer K.D. Chitrapala said.