News Blog

5.31.13 – A group of activists on the Monterey Peninsula are attempting to have their local government seize a private water company!

Voters beware. Just consider Felton, California’s experience. They too were promised lower rates if their CalAM-owned water district was taken over by a public agency. But, their rates went up 30%, and not down.  The General Manager of the public water district that took over CalAm in Felton had this to say at a water forum hosted in Monterey: “San Lorenzo Water District has raised its rates.  In March of ’09, we implemented a 12% rate increase.  In July of 2010, we implemented another 8% rate increase.  And we’re currently looking at a rate increase that would be … 10-15%, somewhere in there.” Click here to read the testimony given by the General Manager of the San Lorenzo Water District (pay special attention to the highlighted areas on page 21!).

According to the Press Banner, Felton’s new public water provider wants another 50% increase!

The worst kind of eminent domain abuse is when taxpayers are fleeced and misled. The voters on the Monterey Peninsula should think twice about incurring hundreds of millions of dollars in debt just to have their rates raised by the public agency…  Click here to read the article about the proposed CalAm takeover.

5.31.13 – The Contra Costa Times writes today in an editorial that the plan to seize mortgages from investor-backed securities is “not ready for prime time”!  This hare-brained scheme, peddled by ex-Democratic Party bigwigs, calls for municipalities to abuse their power of eminent domain to seize mortgages from investor-backed securities.  The plan effectively places all losses on the folks who invest in these securities, usually backed by 401ks and senior retirement accounts! Click here to read the editorial.

5.29.13 – How many farms will the proposed bullet train destroy by seizing land by eminent domain? A special Congressional hearing in Madera hopes to find out, while hearing the concerns of the local farmers and ranchers…  Click here to read the article.

5.28.13 – In an editorial, the San Diego Union Tribune has called fior “sensible and responsible representative on the California Coastal Commission.”  Given how frequently the California Coastal Commission violates private property rights and sides with special (fringe) interest groups, we agree!  Click here to read the editorial.

5.23.13 – The California Alliance to Protect Private Property Rights, California’s leading property rights organization, has submitted letters of opposition to the authors of five bills making their way though the California Legislature.  The bills range from reconstituting forms of Redevelopment (RDA 2.0!), to eliminating voter thresholds for the establishment of special districts, to limiting the rights of property owners in reverse condemnation proceedings.  To learn more about these bill and to read our letters of opposition, click here.

Please contact your State Legislators and ask them to vote no on these bills!  Thank you for your continued support.

5.23.13 – Food and Water Watch, a national organization founded by former Green Party Presidential Candidate, Ralph Nadar, is organizing groups throughout California to seize private water companies by eminent domain. These groups, often organized under the banner of Friends for Locally Owned Water (FLOW), promise government takeovers of local investor owned water companies will lead to lower water rates. For those who live in Felton, CA, they know this is just not so. This week they learned that their water rates may go up over 50%. If this rate increase is approved, the cost of water will have gone up over 80% since the hostile takeover of Felton’s private water company! These FLOW groups are not looking out for ratepayers. They are simply pursuing a anti water rights agenda.

The worst kind of eminent domain abuse is one where ratepayers get fleeced too!  Click here to read the article.

5.9.13 – At taxpayers expense, the City of Escondido is attempting to devastatingly devalue a piece of private property through a ballot initiative. The initiative would change the zoning for a piece of private property from single-family units to open space, effectively disallowing the property owner from constructing new homes and providing tax revenue for important city services. What’s more, the city renewed the property’s zoning in its General Plan update just last year!

To read more about Escondido’s zoning flip-flop, click here.

5.8.13 – Alliance Director Ashley Indrieri, Executive Director of the Family Water Alliance, has been named by Assembly Member Dan Logue as the 2013 Woman of the Year for the 3rd Assembly District.  Congratulations Ashley for all your work to protect California farmland and water rights. You are well deserving of this honor!  Click here to read the article.

4.29.13 – Mortgage Resolution Partners, an investment firm headed by ex-power players in the California Democratic Party such as Willie Brown, is not quitting its attempts to sell cities on the idea of using eminent domain to seize mortgages from privately-owned securities!  The radical idea has drawn the ire of not only the Alliance, which believes that abusing eminent domain to seize investments is vehemently absurd, but from the mortgage securities industry that say this plan will result in an inability to keep mortgage markets fluid in affected municipalities!  Click here to learn more about which municipalities are considering this harebrained scheme!

4.19.13 – Local government’s appetite for more spending led to redevelopment abuse. In many cases, local government seized private property by eminent domain for dubious development projects that promised more money for bigger city budgets and salaries. In time, redevelopment was no longer a tool to improve impoverish neighborhoods, but a tool for politically connected developers. The demise of RDAs is saving CA over $5 billion a year!  Click here to read the article.  Click here to read the article.