No Recycling Bin For You: City of Tulsa to Put ‘Bad’ Recyclers in Time Out

Ever since the new trash system was imposed upon the citizens of Tulsa, I have wondered if there is a little man, like a recycling elf, whose job it is to inspect everyone’s recycling to make sure we are all doing it properly.

Well apparently there is, and what he has found is that too many Tulsans are simply not cooperating with this whole recycling program as instructed.

As a punishment for this lack of cooperation, the city overlords have considered taking recycling bins away from troublemakers who repeatedly ignore notifications to improve their substandard recycling habits.

In addition, the city’s contracted recycling company has requested a SUBSIDY to cover the increased overhead that the excessive time required to separate trash from recyclables has caused.

You can read more about it here.

When city officials start complaining about their programs not working out as intended, brace yourself for a dose of government intervention. What has experience shown us to be government’s go-to solution for government-created problems? A tax increase? A fee increase? A reduction in services?

That brings me to my favorite aspect of the new trash system: We are now paying the same fee that we did under the old trash system for half the service. Rather than twice per week trash removal (or my preference, cutting the fee in half…or better yet, NOT forcing people to pay for a service on which the government has a monopoly but allowing for competition in the market), we now have once per week trash removal unless you pay extra for an optional extra pick up day. Government logic is that this new pick up schedule saves on wear and tear on our city’s streets and on trash truck maintenance. How is that possible if one household in a neighborhood opts for the extra pick up day? I don’t know. Ask a city bureaucrat.