AgdaPkt 2004-04-26 - Laserfiche WebLink

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�� . ■ ■ % ■ ■ . l . . � � � _ � April 27, 2004 `.. DRAFT LETTER to: The Honorable Barbara 9oxer The Honorable Dianne F��instein The Honorable Anna Esho The Honorable Tom Lantos Subject: Oppose Arbitrary Increases in Hetch Hetchy Fees Dear � As mayor of Redwoo�i City, I- along with my City Council colleagues — am responsible for setting policy for the city's water supply and ensuring that our nearly 80,000 customers have a reliable supply of high quality water at fair and reasonable prices. in that regard, I am writing about the proposed $8,000,000 per year federal fee for the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir in Yosemite National Park. As you know, the Reservoir is a critical part of the Bay Area regional water system, which provides most of the water for 1.7 million residents and businesses in Alameda, San Mateo and Santa Clara counties, as well as the 750,000 residents of San Francisco. ,_ The PresidenYs budget request for the next fiscal year raises the fee for the reservoir from $30,000 to $8,000,000. This fee increase will amount to 40 cents per month for households in your district and those in other Congressional districts in the three counties outside of San Francisco. While this amount may seem small, there is no guarantee that it will not be arbitrarily increased in ;he future. San Francisco reports that the amount of $8,000,000 came from the Office of Management and Budget and is not based on an established formula for such fees. The City also reports that such fees are not imposed on other municipalities or agencies, and that it does not reflect a reasonable estimate of costs for use of the Hetch Hetchy Valley. There should be a rational basis for the increase, and it should have some relationship to the fees charged to other states, counties and cities for the use of federal land. In the absence of this information, we urge you to oppose the increased fee. Sincerely Yours, Jeff Ira, Mayor City of Redwood City