The State of Maryland passed law that requires its wealthier residents to pay an additional tax for using their bathroom. This law, known as the “flush” tax, places a tax on the number of times a resident flushes his or her toilet. This tax will not apply to everyone. Mainly, the tax will apply to unmarried taxpayers whose income is greater than $100,000, or more than $150,000 for a joint married couples. Residents of Maryland should not be to worried about the tax because it will only raise a qualifying resident’s taxes by a quarter of a point. The primary reason that the bill was passed was to reduce the level of pollution in the Chesapeake Bay. For this reason, the law does not apply to individuals who live outside of the Chesapeake Bay area.
There are also a few more laws that have passed that are set to also reduce pollution in the water. For example, a new law in the Northeast would set fees to help reduce the pollution caused as result of rainwater runoff.
See Brian Witte, Maryland Law Changes, Tax Hikes Take Effect, DelmarvaNow.com, July 1, 2012.
Special thanks to Jim Hillhouse (Professional Legal Marketing (PLM, Inc.)) for bringing this article to my attention.
