TKC BREAKING AND EXCLUSIVE NEWS!!! KANSAS CITY COMMUNITY BACKLASH AGAINST WATER SERVICES COMING SOON!!!

The fine ass of rising star Nina Agdal serves as a juxtaposition of the rage against a rising tide of water rates that's currently reaching the boiling point.

Check this community reminder sent our way . . .

Community Speak-Out Set For July 9 Against KCMO Water Rate Hike

(Kansas City, Mo.) -- Organizing to fight the recent increase in KCMO's water rates will be one of the topics at a community speak-out on Saturday, July 9, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Quilombo Community Center, 3504 Woodland Ave.

"Many people who pay water bills in Kansas City, Mo., may understandably feel hopeless and think that nothing can be done about the higher rates they are now being forced to pay for water," said JoNina Ervin, coordinator of the Right2Water Coalition--KCMO, which is sponsoring the speak-out. "People all over the country are waging fights to stop high water rates in their cities--in Flint, Mich., Birmingham, Ala., Yorba Linda, Calif., and elsewhere. If we get organized, we could it, too, in Kansas City," Ervin said.

During the speak-out, people who pay KCMO water bills will have a chance to talk about the economic impact of the new water rates on their households. There will also be discussion about possible steps that could be taken to delay or stop the local rate hike, and even require the city to put such projects before voters through a referendum process.

The coalition, a newly formed watchdog group, maintains that the higher water rates are not affordable for many seniors and poor and low-income residential customers. Churches and other non-profit groups provide some financial assistance to customers who need help paying their water bills, but help is not always available to everyone who needs it. Further, the assistance plan is a one-time fix, not something that could help customers pay higher rates each month.

"In Kansas City, Mo., residential water customers who are poor or have low incomes are being subjected to utility rate discrimination. Many of them could have their water shut off if they can't pay their bills," Ervin said.

Kansas City's water infrastructure needs repair because of years of neglect and mismanagement by city officials, according to the coalition. It maintains that the burden of paying for the repairs is being unfairly imposed on residential customers. In addition, Ervin said, city officials have failed to provide a clear accounting of the specifics of how much it will cost to repair the water system. Instead, she added, city officials provide tepid responses to questions about the new water rates, giving no real explanation.

"Ratepayers cannot back a plan in which they have no substantive input or participation, but are just told to pay higher and higher fees. This is public money, and city officials need to clearly account for how it is being spent to the people who pay their user fees and other bills," Ervin said.

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