Othello wants commissioners to examine tax

OTHELLO - Othello wants more investigation into a new tax, which could cost residents a $5 annual fee and add charges to larger wells.

The city council approved sending a letter supporting the Columbia Basin Groundwater Management Area (GWMA) to the Adams County commissioners at a recent meeting. The letter was sent as a way to spur more investigation into a proposed Aquifer Protection Area.

GWMA wants the new taxing district set up as a way to continuing research into aquifers serving the four county area included in the area, Executive Director Paul Stoker said. He has been traveling to Grant, Adams, Franklin and Lincoln county cities seeking support for the proposal.

"We have received several letters from cities already," he said. "Some cities have asked if they can take longer."

Stoker said hearings for the area would need to take place by August to get the measure ready for the November election. He hopes the support from the cities will spur the commissioners in the four counties to pursue the area.

"It has to show some momentum for potential success to get on the actual ballot," he said. "That's what your letter is all about."

The present proposal would add a $5 assessment to properties within the cities and about $35 to $312 a year assessment to large wells in the counties, Stoker said. The wells assessed would largely be agricultural wells. If all four counties join in the district, it would raise about $1 million.

"About half of that money would provide funding for people who collect data and continue to participate in what we're doing previous to this. That would include a director, a clerical person and two scientists," he said. "Our expectation is to continue to expand on (what we've been doing) and provide groundwater solutions to cities and agriculture based on the understanding we gained over the years."

The remaining money would be divided between collecting information, lab fees and some consulting fees for specialists, Stoker said. The agency is expecting to participate in programs with the state Department of Health and Department of Ecology on projects to deal with water issues in the area.

"Municipalities in the Columbia Basin withdraw water primarily from deep aquifers that are ancient water and are not being recharged. These deep basalt wells are declining, and are not sustainable," according to GWMA. "With 15 years of experience, a massive ground water and land use data base and working hydrologic model, the GWMA team is well positioned to assist local government and help citizens understand and collectively manage this declining ground water resource, and explore future water supply options."

The individual counties would collect the tax as part of the property taxes, he said.

City Attorney Katherine Kenison raised issues with the proposals, saying she doesn't think the state law allows what Stoker proposed.

"At this point there are more questions raised than I have answers to," she said.

She pointed out the Aquifer Protection Area and GWMA would be two separate entities. Each county would adopt its own protection area.

"That has to be done by the county commissioners after a public hearing. They adopt a resolution and that resolution puts in the text of it the proposed ballot measure," she said.

The ballot proposition needs to include what the fees would be, how they would be calculated, who will pay the fees and also what the funds from the fees will be used for, Kenison said. If the area was done across the four counties it would require each set of commissioners to agree on the rates.

Kenison questioned whether the protection area could assess fees the way Stoker proposed. The statute only allows the fee to be applied to parcels withdrawing groundwater or discharging to a septic tank.

"The original purpose behind the Aquifer Protection Area was to protect a sole-source aquifer from contamination or being spent from individual wells," she said. "It exempts all of the lots that are either on city sewer or on city water."

Stoker said the state Attorney General's Office, Department of Ecology and Auditor's Office all agreed the protection area could charge individual assessments on property.

"The opinion given to us was that the language in the (statute) is guidance ... and the resolution ... stated what the assessment is, who was going to pay it and what the money was going to be used for," he said.

When Stoker said other Aquifer Protection Areas had been set up to fund groundwater management areas, Kenison disagreed. She pointed out two other Aquifer Protection Areas exist in the state, one in Spokane and one in Renton.

"To my knowledge, neither one of those is associated with a (groundwater management area,)" she said. "I have not seen anything from the (attorney general's) office and I would be interested to see (the opinion.)"

She proposed the city council see the ballot measure before the city sent an official letter of support for the new district.

Kenison didn't have a problem with providing funding to GWMA, she added, but didn't think the protection area would accomplish the goal.

Councilmember Ken Johnson echoed some of Kenison's concerns, but wanted to support moving forward with the process.

"I think (GWMA) does some wonderful research," he said.

Stoker said the only way to get answers to the questions is to move forward with the process.

"This is a little bit of a political football right now. The commissioners don't want to say anything in an election year that has to do with taxes, and cities have reasonable questions," he said.

If no one says anything about the proposal to the commissioners, nothing will happen, Stoker said.

Councilmember Ken Caylor said the intent of the letter was for the commissioners to move forward with the process.

"So they can look into this and have public hearing and whatnot," he said. "I'm sure they're going to come back to us as a city before they put this on the ballot."