Posted on 08/11/2012 8:24:13 AM PDT by OneVike
California Democrats joined Jerry Brown in passing an illegal fire fee for every habitable structure found on a land owners property. Most Californians were under the belief that fire protection was a basic government service? Well, not if you are a Democrat.
The unusual fire charge for rural areas, was pushed through by Gov. Jerry Brown, and styled as a fee and not a tax to avoid a ballot measure requiring a two-thirds vote of approval. Called "The State Responsibility Area Fire Prevention Benefit Fee", it was signed into law last year. The law requires homeowners in designated fire-prone areas to pay an annual fee of $150 for each habitable structure on a parcel. A $35 discount applies to properties that are already protected by an organized fire agency.
If you believe in the rule of law, then you must agree with Jon Coupal of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association, who calls this an illegal tax. Republican Senator George Runner who's with the "Board of Equalization" says this is being done to pay the ongoing infrastructure for "Cal Fire". He claims that the fee paid by a homeowner may not even benefit the homeowners paying the fee, and therefore it is a tax. Well Coupal and Runner are being polite, because as far as I'm concerned, this is just scheme by Jerry Brown and the Democrats to get around Proposition 13, to collect money for the purpose of shoveling it to their Union buddies. One could also argue that it's being done on the backs of Californians who overwhelmingly vote Republican.
The Democrats and Jerry brown may claim this is just a "fire prevention fee" to help fires, but the truth is that the millions collected will just end up being used to fund Cal-FIRE's existing bureaucracy rather than expand the state's fire prevention efforts. What we have here is just another example of Democrats using the government to tax the people who never voted for them. Rural Californians vote Republicans, and it is Republican voters who are getting hit with this illegal tax. A tax by the way that will not benefit them because the money will never be used to help local agencies nor be used to prevent wildland fires at the local level.
If the Democrats are serious about preventing fires, then let the citizens of rural California start chopping trees down in areas that are fire prone. Then the areas will get cleared and when the trees do burn they will be burned in controlled containers called fire places and wood stoves to warm the homes in the winter. I get tired of watching all that good firewood burning during on a hot summer day, when it could be put to good use.
I am heartened by the Republicans plan to fight this illegal law. There are two arguments the Republicans can use. One is to fight it on the grounds that the fee is actually a tax, which would means it requires a 2/3rds majority for passage, not a simple majority. The second way is to use the fact that it unfairly taxes residents twice, because many already pay their counties for the fire services.
Remember, while Jerry brown is in the process of closing state parks to save money, he and the Democrats have found a way to tax the voters who do not vote for them by leveling this fee on rural Californians. All this at a time when it has been revealed that the State parks dept has $54 million in hidden funds no one knew about until just recently. To make it even worse we also just learned that the state owes almost 7 billion to retired teachers for benefits normal Californians will never enjoy. I think it is time that all Californians wake up to the stench that is the Democrat party that rules the roost of California politics.
This article has been presented in full, so there is no need
to visit my site. However, a complimentary hit and maybe
a comment if you so desire would not be looked down upon.
They would just instruct the fire dept to not respond to any address which refuses to pay the fee.
That is interesting. Cal Fire has exactly the opposite position in Tuolumne and Calaveras counties. They will refuse to enter a parcel that places their crew in unnecessary danger.
If you want an article fixed, you have to hit the ‘abuse’ button of the first reply.
sounds like a violation of proposition 13
Thanks “e-s”, I’ll remember that for next time I need something fixed. You would think that after surfing and posting on FR over 14 years I would have known that already.
Just goes to show, you learn something new everyday.
OV
I am convinced it is, and that is one of the angles that Jon Coupal of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association is challenging it in court over.
This has nothing to do with your local fire dept. Those are supported by separate funding sources. In fact this raid on rural California will likely make it more difficult for local fire departments to raise money and get local taxes passed to support local depts. CAlFire operates on a mutual aid nearest resource responds first system with local fire depts. Nobody is going to refuse to come because you didn’t pay the tax.
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