Baltimore water $hutoff$ 2015 (California: renter, homes, neighborhoods)

[Infinite_heights77]

This City Could Become The Next Detroit


This City Could Become The Next Detroit | ThinkProgress




Baltimore’s Inner Harbor

Starting this week, 25,000 households in Baltimore will suddenly lose their access to water for owing bills of $250 or more, with very little notice given and no public hearings.
Rita, a renter in Southeast Baltimore who asked to remain anonymous for this story in order to protect her two children from being taken away, told ThinkProgress she was served with a shutoff notice last week. Maryland law states that a child that is “neglected” may be taken out of his or her home and put into foster care. One characteristic of “neglect” as defined by the Maryland Department of Human Resources is a child with “consistently poor hygiene” that is “un-bathed, [having] unwashed or matted hair, noticeable body odor.”

“I love my kids, and I’d do anything for them,” Rita told ThinkProgress. “But if I turn on the shower or the sink and there’s no water, how can I give them a bath?”

Food and Water Watch researcher Mary Grant explained that making water unavailable to residents is a major health risk, and that if Baltimore were to deprive 25,000 households of water, diseases would have a high chance of propagating throughout densely-populated neighborhoods.

[Infinite_heights77]

According to this article, this includes many Baltimore businesses who are delinquent with their water accounts.

[casualsurfer]

Just looking at what's happening in California and Brazil (Sao Paulo), I want to say that our country charges way too little for the one resource we need more than anything else: potable water.

And seriously, if people can't pay the government should either provide assistance, or risk a major public health crisis by letting people go without it.

[choccity]

Going after households first instead of businesses, that business that owes $7million could help the city coffers, how is going after a single mother with kids gonna help? Turning off her water is probably not going to get her to pay up any faster and now your creating a health risk. Brilliant Baltimore!! You don't want to be compared to Detroit but you're doing the same things to the poorest of your population.

[steppinthrax]

So they owe about 250????

That shows how poor Baltimore is. $250 breaks the bank of these people?

[MrRational]

Originally Posted by choccity

Turning off her water is probably not going to get her to pay up any faster

Of course it will... and you should know it.

[BMoreJuice]

I know a man who pays $150 a month for his water bill, outrageous! Other area's in the country, less than $30.

[North Beach Person]

Originally Posted by BMoreJuice

I know a man who pays $150 a month for his water bill, outrageous! Other area's in the country, less than $30.

You can't make a straight line comparison on water costs. That's because each system is individual with widely varying capital costs. Water is, generally, cheap to get after you factor out capital costs.

Where I grew up uses all surface water from an impoundment built in the 1920s. The cost to acquire that water is almost zero. Unlike most systems here they don't depend on wells. There are treatment costs and capital costs for that equipment and the cost of maintaining/upgrading the pipes.

Sewer is what ramps up the cost when the water/sewer bills are combined.

Back to the original post. There are no requirements for "public hearings" to shut off water and sewer.

The people, and businesses, just need to pay their damned bills. As one of the water authority people said when this came out several days ago, "The people who pay their bills are subsidizing those who don't."

[choccity]

Originally Posted by MrRational

Of course it will... and you should know it.

Don't think so.

[MrRational]

Originally Posted by choccity

Don't think so.

How many of these homes don't also have Electrical service? Gas service? Cable?
Don't pay those bills and it gets shut off.

And you know it.