Letters to the editor Feb. 20
A recent letter to the editor contained false and misleading information regarding the upcoming Bigfork Water Bond.
Fire crews responding to a fire must have quick and easy access to water. The easier the access is to water, the easier it is to extinguish the blaze. The Bigfork Fire Department has indicated there is no easy access points to pull water from the lake, especially during the winter. Water stored by the Bigfork Water District is the quickest, most reliable source of water for fire protection. Prior to an event, all fire trucks are filled in the District with untreated water from fire hydrants with no cost to the Fire District.
Fire protection benefits all residents of Bigfork, regardless of how much water is used. As such, the District has elected to fund the project through a GO Bond, which is based on property value, not water usage. The higher the property value, the higher the potential loss, the higher the yearly assessment.
The primary purpose of this project is for fire protection for all existing residents, not future growth. In the future, new properties annexed will pay for the bond as well, relieving some of the burden of existing property owners. The Bigfork Water and Sewer District considers this project a top priority to provide fire protection to the community. A GO Bond is the most fair, equitable way to fund the project. Please feel free to contact Bigfork Water & Sewer 108 Harbor Heights Blvd., Bigfork, MT or call 406-837-4566 we would be happy to discuss all questions.
—Bigfork County Water and Sewer District board members Tom Cahill, Gene Helberg, Seth Price, Lloyd Ross, Bob Keenan and District Manager Julie Spencer.
The Montana Water Rights Protection Act was recently introduced to the U.S. Senate as a “fix” to the flawed 2015 Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes’ Water Compact.
State Sen. Al Olszewski of Kalispell, who is running for Montana governor, will not quit fighting for everyone’s rights. Olszewski understands. He courageously offers a new solution. A solution to forego any sort of “fix” and to immediately create a Montana water rights defense fund.
State sovereignty is clearly under siege. Citizens across our great state fear CSKT (federal) off-reservation water claims. To allay this fear, U.S. Sen. Steve Daines and state Rep. Kerry White, R-Bozeman, console off-reservation citizens of Montana by stating “The MWRPA protects the water rights of all Montanans and requires the CSKT to permanently relinquish 97% of all water rights claims, forever.” Unfortunately, this statement is completely false, dare I say fraudulent. CSKT corporate minutes approved on Jan. 7, 2020, reveal shocking facts when Tribal water rights attorney Rhonda Swaney admits “We did not give up 97% of our water. The MWRPA will ratify the (2015) compact and the tribal water rights in the (2015) compact. If we accept the settlement under the MWRPA, the Tribes would convey to the state co-ownership of the state’s upper Flathead Basin Rights, but the Tribes retain the same amount of water”. Co-ownership is not giving up 97% of the water.
—David Passieri, St. Ignatius
Our political process and institutions continue to be bogged down by partisan mudslinging and congressional inaction. Yet, one thing all sides can agree on is that the consistent losers from our broken politics are the everyday Americans who can’t afford to wait on D.C. gridlock.
We may be quite far from solving all of our underlying political issues, but what we can do is take an obvious, bipartisan win when it’s right in front of us. And that’s what we have in the Veterans and Consumers Fair Credit Act (VCFCA).
The VCFCA is simple: It would take the 36% annual rate cap and other protections from the overwhelmingly bipartisan Military Lending Act (MLA) and extend them to all consumers. These protections have specifically guarded consumers against the predatory payday loan industry, preventing triple-digit interest rates.
Data from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) shows 85% of payday loans are reborrowed within 30 days and 75% of all payday loan fees come from victims taking an average of 10 loans before being able to pay them off. These numbers aren’t bugs but a feature of the payday lending industry’s business model: Ensnare working Americans in debt traps that only lead to more cycles of debt.
Protecting our veterans from the predatory practices of payday lenders was a no-brainer - so is extending those protections to all consumers. Montana’s delegation to Congress — and all candidates running to be a part of it: take the bipartisan win and support the VCFCA.
—Rep. Tom Winter, D-Missoula, is candidate for U.S. Congress