« Socialized garbage to cost jobs »

Frankly, there is not much more that can be said about about the horrendous Gwinnett solid waste ordinance.  I have explained why this program is absolutely unnecessary.  I have pointed out that this ordinance usurps our economic freedom of choice.  I have outlined how this situation an example of out-of-control government.  I have exposed the fallacy of the notion that this program will save us money.  I have noted that government intends to mandate behavior.  However, as the furor over Gwinnett's socialized garbage program continues to rage, I wanted to take a moment and highlight an aspect of this program which I have not touched upon.  As bad as the above aspects are, several recent articles make clear that the worst consequence of this program is that, in the midst of a recession, people will lose their jobs.

“They put me out of business,” said Buddy Johnson, owner of Southern Sanitation, which has operated in the county for eight years and serves about 5,000 customers. “I’m going to last as long as I can last.”

"We’ve been providing service to Gwinnett County for about the past 13 years,” [Mike Ingle, vice president of Waste Industries] said. “And I was under the impression that we would continue to provide service to [those] residents. Now I’ve got an entire branch operation that has to be shut down and closed, and I will have 46 employees out of work in five weeks.”

S&P Recycling Co., which operates a facility in Lawrenceville, is likely to lose 25 percent of its metro Atlanta market share because of the change, according to Fred Johnson, corporate director of operations.

“To us it’s a big deal,” Johnson said. “The rub we have with it is that it’s going to cost taxpayer jobs and turn them over to prison labor.”

When I consider this aspect of socialized garbage, I realize that the cart collection charge that Allied Waste and Atlanta Waste Industries have charged their customers is fairly minor.  There is a legitimate business cost to collect garbage carts that the Gwinnett County Commission has forced upon these businesses.  Furthermore, I cannot argue with how Atlanta Waste Industries intends to use a portion of the fee proceeds.

Atlanta Waste Industries angered customers this week when it announced it will charge an additional $23.50 for discontinued service when it pulls out of the county Dec. 31. Company vice president Mike Ingle said the fee is to cover benefits to workers affected when the company stops operating in Gwinnett.

It also will defray some shutdown costs. He said he may have to contract for help in collecting about 30,000 carts still in the field.

However, our elected officials do not seem to care.  Though some have reported not receiving prior notification - including my own mother, District 3 Commissioner Mike Beaudreau leaned the fact that stuffers were sent with county water bills this summer.  The irony is that Beaudreau did not defend the ordinance, but rather defended the amount of notification.  Did he tell us why he thought it was ok to take away our freedom of choice?  Did he explain why Gwinnett County can fine me if I do not organize my garbage just so?  As a Buzz reader commented, did he justify why my home can have a lien placed on it rather than simply suspending service should I not pay my garbage bill?  Similarly, District 2 Commissioner Bert Nasuti attempted to legitimize socialized garbage by arguing that it is appropriate to kill a fly with a sledgehammer.  Nasuti claimied that the new ordinance would address the 20,000 Gwinnett residents that do not have garbage service.  However, let's not forget that there may be perfectly legitimate reasons for not having garbage service.  Nasuti's defense of this sordid ordinance is even more insulting given his harsh words for the compartively minor issue of the cart collection fee.  In summary, if this is the defense that Beaudreau and Nasuti offered, they did not defend the ordinance whatsover but spewed more talking points. Do they even care that their needless, bloated, big government program will cost real jobs for real people?  Sure, maybe these folks don't live in Gwinnett and maybe some will get hired by the new haulers chosen by Gwinnett Clean & Beautiful.  But if even one hard-working individual loses their jobs over this ordinance, these commissioners and any other who voted for this, should pay with their commission seats.

My fellow Gwinnettians, our commission has really gotten the best of us on this one.  The most frustrating point yet also the silver lining is that Gwinnett residents only have themselves to blame.  Beaudreau is technically right in that we all had a chance to comment on this.  While I cannot be certain our commissioners would have listened had we spoke out, the reality is that we are in this mess because of our own apathy.  Despite how our commissioners have disrespected us, the main point I would hope my readers recognize is very simple but so important as we move toward 2009.  When you do not pay attention to what your elected officials are doing and you do not get involved, government will run amok, trample over your freedoms and insert itself in as many nooks and crannies of your life as possible.  As has been the case with Gwinnett waste, too many elected officials cannot be trusted to act in our best interest.  My fervent hope is that this controversy will arouse my fellow residents, encourage them to get involved, and prompt them to closely monitor the actions of this commission and all their elected officials at all levels of government.  We ourselves must be engaged either to keep our officials in check or to throw them out of office when they fail us.