Letter: All taxpayers deserve debris help

Most would be surprised to learn that 61 percent of the streets in Beaufort County were built and are maintained by private communities. This at no expense to Beaufort County or the state. If these roads were public, the cost to the taxpayers in the county for construction and maintenance would more than double. The people who live in those communities pay federal, state, municipal and county taxes and fees at the same rates as the rest of county residents.

In the event of a hurricane or natural disaster, FEMA can approve reimbursement of up to 80 percent of the cost of removing storm-related debris from public streets, but is not normally allowed to do the same for private communities. This is essentially “taxation without representation”and is blatantly unfair.

Citizens of private communities should be entitled to the same services as people on public streets; they pay the same taxes.

In certain cases, the FEMA rules have been waived to allow this to happen. As an example, recently 26 counties in Louisiana were granted a waiver because of the devastating flooding.

All residents of private communities along the coast should be very grateful to U.S. Reps. Mark Sanford and Tom Rice who are working with FEMA to try to secure a waiver for the victims of Hurricane Matthew. If they are successful in their efforts it can mean the financial survival and stability of the many private communities that are so important to the economy of Beaufort County. Thank you, Congressmen Sanford and Rice.

This story was originally published October 21, 2016 at 11:46 AM with the headline "Letter: All taxpayers deserve debris help."