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Editor,
Plumbing shop owners claim San Mateo public works employees illegally repair sewer lines on private property ("Criminal probe for public works" in the Dec. 1 edition of the Daily Journal). They contend whenever sewage backs up on private property a private plumber must correct the problem.
However, there is a counterpoint to their argument. City crews are responsible for the lines from the city cleanout to the main sewage line.
Some cleanouts are located on the private property side of the sidewalk. City crews must come onto the property to repair them. They
have told me the general policy is that when a problem occurs between the cleanout and the main line, the city is responsible even when the cleanout is a few feet inside the property line. The property owner pays for any repairs between the building and the cleanout.
This policy shows the advantage of municipal public works. Citizens work together through their government to efficiently provide themselves with a service. Property owners pay a sewage treatment fee in their property taxes which funds the system.
This means the citizens pay the public works staff directly. There's no business profit markup, no executive salaries, no bonuses, no dividends to stockholders. San Mateo public works employees work hard and have a reputation for doing excellent jobs. They're proud to leave the property as tidy as if they were working on their mom's house.
If a private plumber must repair a problem between the cleanout and the main line, the citizen has to pay the plumber plus the sewage fee in the property tax bill. This is a bit like double taxation. We shall see which policy prevails, the corporate one or the municipal one.
Jack Daane
San Mateo
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