Blind woman threatened over unpaid 1-cent bill
By Brad on Nov 18, 2008 in America, Government, Stupid Things, Things That Make You Shake Your Head | comments(0)
“74-year-old resident of Attleboro, Mass., told lien would be placed on home” because of an overdue water bill with an amount due of exactly 1 penny, reports the Associated Press via MSNBC. This paragraph in the story was priceless:
Eileen Wilbur told The Sun Chronicle of Attleboro the letter sent her blood pressure soaring, and pointed out that stamps cost 42 cents.
The City Collector seems unapologetic:
“My question is, how come it wasn’t paid when the (original) bills went out?”
The story says the charge was from the previous fiscal year, which ran from July 2007 to July 2008. If the blind woman doesn’t pay it by Dec. 10th, she’ll face a $48 penalty and a lien on her home. All for ONE stickin’ penny. You would think that the computer system could establish a threshold of, say, anything less than $1.00 would simply be ignored, if for no other reason than to save the cost of the stamp, the envelope, the paper the bill is printed on and the labor cost of putting it all together.
I agree with the homeowner’s daughter, who described the situation as “ridiculous.” Ridiculous indeed.
