Lake County, Ind. to Add Storm Water Fee

Lake County, Ind. residents will soon begin paying extra for clean waterways.

Federal agencies are in the process of handing over responsibility for storm water management and pollution prevention to Lake County officials, and the bill’s coming due, according to a report in the Post-Tribune.

It should cost the Lake County Surveyor’s Office about $1.5 million per year to administer the county storm-sewer system, Surveyor George Van Til told the Lake County Council on Tuesday.

Under a plan to pay for the program, roughly 28,000 properties in unincorporated Lake County would be assessed a $4.25 monthly user fee.

Municipalities around the county will need to oversee their own clean-water initiatives.

The County Council took the first step toward approving the project Tuesday, creating a fund for the storm-sewer system.

The federally mandated changeover to local control of water cleanliness guidelines has been coming for the past several years.

The county Surveyor’s Office and the county Drainage Board will have complete control over developing and maintaining discreet storm water and surface water drainage systems in unincorporated areas.

Source: Post-Tribune