‘Beating back Cal Am's distortions,’ By Larry Ford, Ken Meshke, Alexis Krostue, John Fasolas, Susan Merritt, Jim Mosher and Michele Mosher, Felton Residents, Expose ‘Learn from Felton: No on O!’ TV Commercial's ‘Half-Truths of Cal-Am'

ABSTRACT:  In a Guest Commentary, The Monterey County Herald, entitled “Beating back Cal Am's distortions” (05/14/14), Felton residents Larry Ford, Ken Meshke, Alexis Krostue, John Fasolas, Susan Merritt, Jim Mosher and Michele Mosher rebut the “Learn from Felton: No on O!” TV commercial claims. Addressing the “half-truths of Cal-Am,” they state “Cal Am claims Felton's water rates are up 60 percent, but they fail to mention that this is over a period of six years… And of course Cal Am doesn't tell you that they proposed even higher rate increases when they owned our system and were allowed to increase rates by 74 percent in just one three-year period.” And they state “The Cal Am commercial also states that Felton's bond payment has increased our property taxes nearly $14,000, but they don't say that this is over a 30-year period…We are actually paying $466 a year for the bond to buy our water system. Felton voted overwhelmingly, winning 74 percent of the vote, to purchase the water system from Cal Am and place the bond payment on our property tax bill. In fact, when you combine our current lower water rates plus the annual bond payment to publicly own our water system, we are still paying hundreds of dollars per year less than Cal Am was requesting.” For local perspective on “half-truths” and “a flat-out lie,” Carmel-by-the-Sea Mayor Jason Burnett called Measure K's mailer "a flat-out lie" designed to trick the public prior to the election in November 2013. Furthermore, “Burnett said using the letter was a calculated move and indicative of what he felt was the campaign's attempt to mislead voters about the status of the Central Coast Veterans Cemetery.” "I don't think you can give them the benefit of the doubt," he said. "They know exactly what they are doing." To wit, Carmel-by-the-Sea Mayor Jason Burnett and the other five peninsula mayors also know exactly what California American Water Company is doing with its $2.2 million campaign against Measure O, yet Carmel-by-the-Sea Mayor Jason Burnett and his cohort mayors support “NO ON O!”

REFERENCES:
Larry Ford, Ken Meshke, Alexis Krostue: Beating back Cal Am's distortions
By Larry Ford, Ken Meshke, Alexis Krostue, John Fasolas, Susan Merritt, Jim Mosher and Michele Mosher
Guest commentary

The Monterey County Herald
Posted: 05/14/2014 06

Carmel mayor calls Measure K ad 'flat-out lie'
Mailer claims all of county's mayors opposed to M
By PHILLIP MOLNAR Herald Staff Writer
Posted: 11/01/2013