if the owner failed to remove it then the ayuntamiento ( local council ) had to , within another thirty days , and then send the bill to the owner , and this is where i came in ; responsible people were usually strongly against this type of vandalism , until it hit them in their pockets , whether it was directly , as the owner of a shop or property ( occupied or empty ) , or indirectly when it came to paying their ( slightly ) increased taxes , so to make the pill easier to swallow vicente had suggested to j.a .