Ballot Measure 10-127 Would Restore the Council’s Ability to Raise Appropriate Fees - Please Vote 'YES'

In the next several days Reedsport voters, like those all over Oregon, will be receiving their ballots for the May 21 election date. On that ballot the voters in Reedsport will have the opportunity to vote on Ballot Measure 10-127. This is a measure the City Council has respectfully referred to the voters. Measure 10-127 would simply restore to the Council the ability to appropriately and carefully raise some fees and also reestablish a very small list of appropriate fees that were recently erased in 10-119. The fees impacted, such as those for launching boats, renting the community building, acquiring a peddler’s 10-day business license or having a property line adjustment are ALL fees that are paid only by those individuals or groups who request and use them.



The fees that Measure 10-127 would impact are those that are established by the Council to help cover the city’s cost of administering them. For example, the city sustains considerable cost in maintaining and repairing our boat ramp, dock, and adjacent restrooms on the Umpqua River waterfront. Likewise, a property line adjustment involves considerable city staff time. It makes great sense that the people who use these facilities or services are the ones who pay for their use, and not the general tax-payer in Reedsport. Thousands of boat-launches occur from our ramp each summer and autumn by people who do not live in Reedsport. Shouldn’t these non-residents help pay for the maintenance of those facilities? Ballot Measure 10-127 would authorize the Council to establish appropriate fees, always with the opportunity for community input, for just those kinds of services.

With the passage of Ballot Measure 10-127 those citizens who don’t use these particular city services will not pay for them.  If you don’t have a flood plain review, you won’t be required to pay for one. If you don’t need a building permit, you won’t be required to pay for one. If you don’t purchase a sandbag from the city, you won’t be required to pay for it.

Ballot Measure 10-127 does not deal with utility fees such as water, wastewater and storm water. It will have no impact on them.

Ballot Measure 10-127 allows the Reedsport City Council, elected by you, to set responsible rates for services and functions not often used by the general public. The purpose of these rates and fees is to help defray the city’s own costs for materials, time and labor, just so the general public does not have to.

Measure 10-127 allows for a common sense approach to rate and fee structure.

I urge you to vote YES on Measure 10-127.

Keith Tymchuk is the mayor of Reedsport.