Dear Ralph,

I have become aware that the City of Richmond Mayor Stoney is begging for more assistance from the state of Virginia in regard to the city’s utility budget. His letter, dated July 7 and signed by the nine Democratic Party members of Richmond’s delegation to the General Assembly, asks for money to pay for improvements to Richmond’s sewer system from the influx of $4.3 billion the state is to receive from the federal American Rescue Plan. Now, normally, as a king, I loathe interjecting in matters between your state and and the city or bothersome party politics, just as I know that you, as a state official, do not wish to become too involved in local city matters. That said, two things are causing this exception from normal – one, the amount of American money requested, $833 million, is rather large and meaningful; and, two, I am personally offended by how the City uses its water utility to take advantage of its own citizens, especially its most impoverished. Therefore, as the King of Oregon Hill, I am writing to ask that you give Mayor Stoney’s request more scrutiny, and perhaps even rejecting his plea altogether until certain considerations are met.

As you are already aware, the City of Richmond as well as your Commonwealth of Virginia overall, are very blessed with a plenitude of water, especially in comparison to western American states. In the past, city officials have taken this natural blessing for granted and used it to help wash away the city’s wastes, and consequently polluted the James River. Sewer overflow, as citizens have come to know it, is rightly seen far and wide as a large, embarrassing, decades-old problem that must be corrected. I give that environmental effort my royal benediction. If I felt that this matter was all this was about, I would leave this to yourself and others to freely administer.

But City officials over time abused the water wealth in other ways, and have unwisely become dependent on unfairly bilking their own constituents. I point to four problematic practices –
1) A payment line (I believe the bureaucrats refer to it as a PILOT) in the citizens’ water bills that goes straight to the City’s general fund, money that has not necessarily gone to paying for water/sewer or anything other than padding the City’s budget. The city’s PILOT surcharge on water includes a reprehensible payment in lieu of federal income tax. I will note that Paul Goldman, former chairperson of the Democratic Party of Virginia, has also called attention to this ‘rip-off’ of Richmond citizens (sans lawsuit, so far…).
2) Bad water agreements with the surrounding counties that sell the the City’s water at low, wholesale prices. Indeed, the City is charging it’s own citizens more for the water than the counties are charging theirs for the water their governments are buying from the City. These low prices for this valuable natural resource are encouraging an even more horrible waste through growing suburban sprawl in the counties, which in turn is polluting the James River even more.
3) High minimum water rates for residents. At one point in the past, the local Green Party ran a contest that would award anyone who could find a higher residential minimum water rate that was comparable to the City of Richmond’s anywhere else in the country- no one won (The City administration later lowered the rate just enough that the contest could not be run again). It is shameful that the City keeps crying poverty, creates whole public bureacracies devoted to ‘wealth building’, but still insists on high minimum rates which place an unfair burden on its poorest residents for what is a basic human need. I have heard one wealthy white resident defend this longtime practice as a way “to claw back some of the money that spent on public housing’ (for black residents).
4) The overall utility and water situation favors large corporations over residents. The utility rates in effect award large volume users while punishing poor residents. It discourages conservation. This is also reflected in other matters – for example, how Dominion Power company is allowed to release water from its coal ash ponds while discouraging other uses like micro hydropower on the James River. Again, it pains me to watch how the City not only weaponizes its water utility against its own residents, but squanders and abuses its natural blessing of water wealth. It is truly offensive and deserves repudiation.

It should be noted that citizens have tried to bring these problematic and unfair practices to the State Attorney’s attention, state representatives’ attention, the Mayor’s attention, to City Council’s attention, to the media’s attention, and to the larger populace’s attention, all with limited effect. Water rates have been brought up by mayoral and council candidates as a campaign issue, only to be forgotten or abandoned by those who win office. Reporters shrug their shoulders and tell me that Richmond uses its water utility in this manner to balance its budget, never mind how regressive it is and how it would make more sense to charge large volume users more instead of overcharging its poorest residents.

Ralph, it is widely reported that you and Terry regard Levar as a ‘rising star’ in your political party, but you should not be blind to what is important here – yes, the City needs money to repair its sewer system in order to help the environment- very much so. But keep in mind that the City has been using the sewer overflow problem as a reason to beg money from the federal and state governments for years and years. And while Richmond has undoubtedly realized many benefits from its CSO control program, the City is not doing as good as a job as it should in regard to stewarding it’s water wealth for the benefit of ALL of its citizens and the environment. And in the REAL big picture, these underlying issues will only deepen and become more exacerbated as climate change reduces the current water wealth. In your speeches, Governor, you talk about how Virginia needs to become more progressive and future-oriented. I contend Richmond’s backwardness must change in order for that to happen.

I cannot command, but I strongly recommend your office consider rejecting the Mayor’s plea until City officials, including the Mayor and City Council, publicly and sincerely promise to phase out the PILOT payment, renegotiate its county water agreements, and fully reform its utility water rate structure. Yes, the City desperately needs the money to correct the sewer overflow problem, but it must reform its water utility and water wealth management in order to have that money spent well.

While I do not have power over the Commonwealth of Virginia, I do claim sovereignty over Oregon Hill within the City of Richmond, and I feel it is my duty to look over the interests of citizens. I am hoping this letter will prevent future interventions.

Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns.

Regards,

Scott Burger
King of Oregon Hill