The Louisiana Supreme Court has ruled in favor of a portable restroom company in a dispute over sales tax. Under the state’s sales tax code, the lease of property is a taxable transaction, but waste collection and cleaning services are not taxable. Pot-O-Gold Rentals was assessed sales tax on the full value of contracts that involved both portable restroom rentals and cleaning/hauling services. The company had been charging the sales tax only on the leasing portion of such contracts.

A trial court issued a summary judgment in Pot-O-Gold’s favor. That ruling was overturned by the Court of Appeals, which determined the entire transaction was taxable due to the “intertwined relationship” between the leasing and cleaning services. The Supreme Court, stating that tax laws should be interpreted liberally in favor of the taxpayer, overturned the Appeals Court, ruling the bundled rental and service transaction was not taxable at all. It supported its ruling by citing a state tax regulation dealing with garbage dumpsters in which neither the dumpster rental nor collection of waste is taxable.

“It is difficult to determine why one situation is treated differently than the other,” the court stated. It also noted, “…to hold that providing cleaning services for portable toilets is not a taxable event if the toilet is owned by someone else, but is a taxable service if the toilet is owned by the lessor, creates an absurd result.”

Maryland

To help fund its Chesapeake Bay cleanup effort, Maryland already has a rain tax (stormwater) and a flush tax on both sewer and septic users. Next up could be a chicken tax of 5 cents on every bird placed on farms by poultry companies. Supporters say the proposal would help fund septic system improvements, the cover crop program and other measures aimed at improving water quality in the bay. Opponents say it singles out poultry companies and would cost five large poultry companies $15 million and could hurt poultry farmers who raise the animals. A similar bill last year failed due to a veto threat from then-Gov. Martin O’Malley, who could not seek re-election due to the state’s term limits.

Wisconsin

A provision in the Wisconsin state budget would end a program designed to help low-income people and small businesses replace or repair their failed septic systems. The Wisconsin Fund provided $2.3 million in 2014 to help 654 property owners. All but five of the state’s 72 counties participate in the program, which began in 1978. The proposal in Gov. Scott Walker’s budget is subject to approval by the state Legislature.

Missouri

Taney County spent $73,335 in 2014 to pay for the pumping of 500 septic tanks and will continue the program. It was the first year the county offered to cover the full cost, an average of $145, to make sure septic systems were being pumped properly. The fund utilized 1 percent of the revenue from a county .5 percent Wastewater Capital Improvements Sales Tax. The county has renewed an agreement with a local pumping company for 500 pumpouts again in 2015 with 70 homes already signed up due to a backlog from last year. A homeowner can only access the program every four years. The free pumping applies only to single-family residential properties.

Alberta, Canada

Helping homeowners manage their septic systems is the goal of a pilot program launched in early 2015 in the province of Alberta. “Septic Sense: Solutions for Rural Living” is sponsored by the Land Stewardship Centre and the Alberta Onsite Wastewater Management Association. The one-year program will implement, test and evaluate the feasibility of developing a full-fledged septic system operation and maintenance workshop program in Alberta.

According to an announcement of the program, it will “offer a range of educational opportunities and resource materials for landowners, including a workshop and a homeowner’s guide developed by wastewater management experts that covers various types of ways to cost-effectively maintain septic systems.” It is based on a similar program offered for years for private well owners.