Jefferson County officials are scrambling to determine how they failed to bill St. Vincent’s Hospital, UAB and others large facilities for nearly three-million dollars in sewer services. The problem came to light Monday in a federal court hearing over whether a receiver should take over management of the county’s sewer system. County commission president Bettye Fine Collins tells WBHM’s Tanya Ott the billing mistake was a shock to her.
For his part, Jefferson County Commissioner Jim Carns tells Tanya Ott it was a mistake that took place before he was overseeing sewer operations and he doesn’t make any apologies for it.
Collins, Carns and Ott continue their conversation with a discussion about the legal challenges to the occupational tax and how the county might handle massive budget cuts.