By Yael T. Abouhalkah, Kansas City Star Editorial Page columnist
For years the federal government has told Kansas City to fix its sewers, yet offered no money to help with this costly task. This is an unfunded mandate for local taxpayers.
So on Friday, City Council member Jan Marcason and others said they support an excellent idea:
Use some of the upcoming federal stimulus funds for KC's green solutions to its sewer problems.
U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill, a Missouri Democrat, has recommended at least $5 billion be spent nationwide on local water and sewer projects.
That's not going to go too far in KC, where the sewer repair bill tops $2.4 billion.
However, remember that we're talking about stimulus funds here -- money that needs to go into the pipeline (so to speak) as quickly as possible, to create jobs and get good projects accomplished.
In KC's case, the city could easily use tens of millions of dollars to quickly begin its plans to use green solutions to keep stormwater out of the city's sewer system.
The city could pay for more rain barrels for homeowners, disconnect downspouts from the stormwater system, build more vegetation swales (ditches with water-absorbing plants) and subsidize some rain gardens in homeowners' yards.
Putting federal stimulus money into KC's sewer-repair project would create jobs and improve the city's water quality.
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yeah
I just hate it when people lump government under "government."
You and Obama, Yael
Insist on mis characterizing the planned bureauecratic spending spree that many believed inevitable if Obama was elected. Your PC vocabulary is comical.
It is not a stimulus. It is the next step in the great economic decline of a once great economic power. Only the government can grow. Private enterprise continues its declining influence much as you, Lewis and Jokeman have dreamed.
The most recent unemployment stats (7.2%) show employment growth in three sectors: education, healthcare and government. All 3 are, in fact, extensions of Obama's perverse view of what should constitute "government". The template is in place and being rolled out under the guise of "bailout" and "stimulus". At least be forthright about it.