Some clutch a receipt for a bill they claim to have already paid, others a reminder worth thousands of euros that's been around for years: for a week, residents of Capoterra have been crowding the tax office after the avalanche of water bills sent to their homes by the municipality. Having to prove they've already paid a bill has become routine for the residents of Capoterra, given that the tax collection agencies on behalf of the municipality, which have alternated over the past fifteen years, have never managed to separate delinquent taxpayers from those who have paid. The failure to update the database has thus forced residents to repeatedly prove they're up to date with their municipal taxes: what's happening these days is just the latest episode in a long series.
From the minority benches, Silvano Corda, president of the Services Oversight Commission, urges the city administration to immediately suspend the sending of tax bills and the collection of those already delivered to taxpayers: "Here we go again, many citizens risk finding themselves on the hook for taxes already paid years ago. For days, the Tax Office on Via Diaz has been crowded with angry citizens, forced to prove payments already made. I've been told that taxpayers have brought water bills for amounts as high as €17,000, some of which are ten years old. To clarify, I ask for the immediate suspension of tax collection and an investigation of any errors on the bills."
Mayor Beniamino Garau clarified the situation: "Following the reminder from Arera, which identified errors in the 2023 water bills, we were forced to reissue all the bills. This is the last year managed by the municipal offices; as everyone knows, billing from the following year has been transferred to Abbanoa, which handles not only maintenance but also payments. This will be the last time taxpayers will have to prove they have paid a water bill: our offices are available to residents, who can also email a receipt of payment."
