Will they charge us for air next?

Today, I'm going to gripe. I can't help it. I'm all for paying for services but when they are priced to high, then I have to complain. If you live in Ventura County, you may have already read in today's newspaper that our City Council wants to incorporate a 911 new tax. It will be charged for both landlines (house phones) and cell phones. So if you happen to own both, you will be charged per line. You can elect to pay either a monthly fee of $1.49 or a one time useage fee (that's every time you call 911) at $50.00! Yes, fifty dollars! Can you imagine, if your having a heart attack and you must get help, and then you get hit with a $50.00 fee the following month?The only exemption is for those on low incomes with "lifeline" where the state allows them to have a phone at a lower cost each month. They claim that this will help the to recover current 911 costs, and to add additional police officers to the city.

My question is this. Doesn't the City Council have something better to do with their time than to stick it to the people and make them even poorer than they already are? I mean really. This is so silly. There has to be another way to raise money to pay for the services. Do they really think that people can afford either fees? $1.49 may not seem much to some people, but others who are elderly and on Social Security have to pay for rent, every cent matters.

Just think of it, these are the people who you voted into office and are supposed to be serving you. I suggest calling them or writing them and letting them know how you feel about this proposed fee. At a time when our state has a huge deficit and we are on the edge of a nationwide recession, this is a very bad move on the part of our elected city leaders. Shame on them!