County waives water charges for victims of Malibu wildfires
By Daily Press Staff
(subhed)
County waives water charges for victims of Malibu fires
By Daily Press Staff
LOS ANGELES — Victims of the rash of fires that plagued Malibu late last year are getting a bit of a boost from the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors in the form of utility bill relief.
Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky, who represents the Westside, announced Tuesday that the board approved a policy for Los Angeles County Waterworks District No. 29 to waive water bill charges for homes or businesses that were destroyed or substantially damaged by the fires.
“Victims of the Malibu fires have enough to worry about without the county dunning them for a water bill on a property that may no longer even be there,” Yaroslavsky said. “Our board felt very strongly this was the only right thing to do.”
County Waterworks District No. 29 (WWD 29) serves customers in Malibu, Topanga Canyon and Marina del Rey.
WWD 29 will reduce charges for customers whose heavy water use during the fires bumped them up into the higher “excessive water-use” rate, in light of the fact that residents and firefighters used much of the water to protect the endangered properties.
Yaroslavsky said that WWD 29 will also waive reconnection charges for prior customers or those needing to upgrade their water service to accommodate fire sprinklers required as a condition of reconstruction.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on March 5, 2008. Read the original PDF.