By Jerry Bellune 
JerryBellune@yahoo.com
Lexington County’s flooding problems aren’t over.
But it’s proposed solution appears dead.
The county wanted a so-called “rain tax” on property all over the county.
County offficials estimate storm water problems cost $3 million a year.
To repair the damage, the county says it needs:
• $114 million for storm water system repairs.
• $76 million for community flooding problems.
The SC Poultry Growers Association mounted strong rain tax opposition due to its high cost to their members.
Critics say the tax will harm economic development and is unfair to property owners who did not create nor contribute to flooding problems.
“What will this do to Amazon, Nephron, Michelin and US Foods?” asked council member Darrell Hudson of Lexington, a storm water tax opponent
This leaves County Council looking for a solution to a problem that has been growing for decades.
Much of the flooding occurs in older neighborhoods north of Lake Murray. 
Early developers in those areas were allowed to build in flood-prone areas.
An alternate proposal is asking voters next November to raise the local sales tax another cent.
Hudson, a penny tax advocate, says the revenue raised would go to county road repairs as well as storm water drain repair.
Hudson says the county and local towns need money for road and bridge repairs.
Neither the county nor towns receive any of the millions of dollars in state gasoline tax hike money.
That’s led to another proposal to ask the county legislative delegation to push state officials to share the gas tax revenue with counties and towns .
The Department of Transportation is sitting on millions of gas tax dollars because it cannot find enough contractors to do state road and bridge repairs,
Penny tax proposals have been unpopular in Lexington County in light of the abuse of similar tax dollars in Columbia and Richland County.
Their public officials’ misconduct has made voters on this side of the river distrustful of officials’ promises. 
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