Carroll County Chamber of Commerce Push to Take Over Trash

In a move that should shock most Carroll Countians, the Carroll County Chamber of Commerce is exploring the possibility of taking over public trash collection in the county.

Most residents of Carroll County probably don't realize that this is going on because most people don't read the minutes of the Carroll County Chamber of Commerce. I only noticed it because of a small article on page 15 of The Advocate of Eldersburg and Sykesville, a small local newspaper.

The article says:

"One idea is that the county would contract one hauler for the best price for the whole county."

I realize that many jurisdictions in the state, including Baltimore City and Baltimore County provide public trash pick up. But I wonder why people think that trash collection is a function of the government? This is where common-sense thinkers question the role of government. Should government be bigger to provide services that private industry can do for lower costs? This is a prime example of where the government needs to stay out.

You should contact the Carroll County Chamber of Commerce and let them know that the government should not be involved with trash pick-up. The board of directors are:

Valerie Balaz, Marlene Titus, Kristen Beck, Sanady Bertamini, Brenda Fisher, Jenny Gambino, and Steve Aquino, Tom Alessi, Jeannine Morber, Steve Wantz, Nancy Lynch, Mike Shank, Christine Walters, Mike Fox, and Rich Haddad, Chamber President.

You can contact them with the information on this link.

Related to this exploration is an idea proposed the Carroll County Commissioners (Dean Minnich, Michael Zimmer, and Julia Gouge) that would require all trash haulers to deposit their collections in the Carroll County landfills.

This idea is very anti-capitalism. If the Carroll County landfills are not offering competitive rates, trash haulers have an obligation to their customers and shareholders to find the lowest price with the most efficient facility to deposit their haul in order to provide the best value to both. Requiring them to deposit all of the collections in the Carroll County landfills may result in higher prices for customers and lower profits for the owners. If Carroll County is not able to provide a low-cost efficient option for these companies, the companies should not be forced to use them. They should be allowed to find alternate sites.

For a county that's as pro-business and pro-Republican\Conservative as Carroll County is, I am astonished that these ideas were even proposed. Are liberals infiltrating our political system? Don't stand for this. Let them know that you do not agree with these ideas!