A bit more of the unreality we face when trying to move at our own cadence in close proximity to the herd. https://www.naturalbuildingblog.com/judge-declares-living-off-grid-illegal/ [video=youtube;wP9b6FhmwwA]https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=wP9b6FhmwwA[/video]
unfortunately some communities have rather invasive regulations about what can be built or done. around here, you can't have a small lot and your house has to be so many square feet or larger. there is no way to build a small efficient house for little money. you must also have a large sewage system (even if you never use it for anything other than grey water) with all the expenses of putting that plumbing and leach field in. etc. some places make it tough to live a simple life.
as far as the original article goes, if she is using the public sewer system then she should have to pay for that connection and usage. once you live in a city you pretty much are at the mercy of all sorts of regulations (including front yard and tall weed or grass regulations). pretty much your front lawn is rarely really yours for gardens or food production if your neighbors or someone decides to complain. and the expense of putting fencing around a back yard to block nosy/ignorant neighbors from complaining all the time might be about the same cost as for buying fresh veggies from the store for many years.
Not the best plan to live in an area like that and decide to go off grid. I lived in FL for close to 30 years and had to get out while I could afford it. Cost of living from the government fee aspect is crazy. They want their money. Cape Coral was flooded by retirees decades ago. 6-7 years ago in FL it was $10 to get a duplicate title for a vehicle. Now it's $185. I got a seat belt ticket just before I moved, $116. The house we rented had a well but we still had a water bill. $0. for usage but $35 for access. The house wasn't hooked up to city water but since the pipe was out at the road the access fee applied. Cheap land there is 10k an acre with the exception of some scrub palm forests up in the panhandle near the nuke power plant.