Opinion By Donna Westfall – May 12, 2023 Did did you get a Notice of Public Hearing Regarding Proposed Sewer User Fee Increase from the County? Gee whiz! Will it ever stop? Yes. Here's how it stops. It's called a Prop 218 protest. You don't have to stand outside with a sign, you just have to sign your name and put in a written protest. Here's an example: I OPPOSE SEWER USER RATE INCREASES UNDER PROP 218 I, _______________________ Print Name Address or Parcel Number: ____________________________ CIRCLE IF YOU ARE THE OWNER OR TENANT THAT PAYS SEWER BILL OWNER TENANT ONLY 1 (ONE) Protest per parcel AND ONLY COUNTED IF YOU SIGN: Signature ____________________ Date: _____________ Do you own more than 1 property? There are 3,347 properties that are affected. To stop an increase, 50% plus 1 need to be turned in to the County by June 27th. It's really that simple. Who can sign? The owner or the tenant that pays the water/sewer bill. That $72 or $78 you find on your property tax bill each year, wonder what they've spent that money on? Let's find out before putting more money into the coffers of our government agencies that don't seem to function very well. Otherwise, you can look forward to paying $178.08 within 5 years. And that's a 245% increase. Questions?