HARTMANN’S 'WILL TO ACT' IS JUST MORE MANDATES, MORE MONEY, NO SOLUTIONS

Noozhawk recently graced us with Supervisor Joan Hartmann's latest missive on the urgent (and perpetually unresolved) 'wastewater problem' in idyllic Los Olivos. Apparently, the Central Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board — that paragons of efficiency and common sense — is 'losing patience.' Oh, the horror! It seems the solution, according to Hartmann, isn't less government, but more of her 'will to act,' which inevitably means more regulations, more state grants, and more local residents footing the bill for grand designs hatched in far-off Sacramento or the County Building.

What Noozhawk's breathless reporting (and Hartmann's op-ed) conveniently omits is that this 'wastewater crisis' has been a golden goose for consultants, attorneys, and state bureaucrats for decades. Every time a new 'solution' is proposed, it comes with a hefty price tag, almost always for engineering studies and feasibility reports that gather dust while the problem — or rather, the government's perceived problem with perfectly functional septic systems — persists. It’s almost as if the 'problem' is less about sewage and more about creating a constant stream of government-funded projects and expanding the regulatory state’s reach into the quiet lives of rural communities.

The real story here isn't the ‘will to act,’ but the will to resist being strong-armed by environmental extremists and their allies in county government who see every private septic tank as a personal affront. Los Olivos residents aren't lacking 'will'; they're lacking a desire to turn their peaceful valley into a construction zone for a centralized system they don't necessarily need, all while paying exorbitant fees. Under President Trump’s common-sense leadership, we’re seeing a rollback of federal overreach, but locally, the progressive appetite for control over every aspect of private life remains insatiable.

Perhaps Supervisor Hartmann and her regulatory pals should spend less time dictating septic solutions and more time pondering how their endless mandates drive up costs, stifle local autonomy, and ensure a perpetual cycle of 'problems' that only Big Government can 'solve' — usually with a blank check from the taxpayers. It’s not about finding a solution; it’s about control, and ensuring there's always another grant application to fill out, another consultant to pay, and another election to justify their ever-expanding bureaucracy.