Clean Water Restoration Act is another power grab by Feds
To the Editor:

The federal government is now engaged in another power grab through HR 2421, the Clean Water Restoration Act of 2007. The act would eliminate "navigable" and replace it with all waters of the United States, including intrastate waters.

This would include jurisdiction over all wet areas within a state, including ground water, ditches, pipes, streets, gutters, and other areas. We have a drainage ditch in our front yard, in which dirty water may come down from the hillside during a heavy rain. Under this legislation, our land would be covered although we donít have control over an Act of God.

The U. S. has made good progress under the Clean Water Act, and further legislation is not needed. The federal government has no right to trample statesí rights.

Representative Jim Oberstar is the author of this legislation. Tim Walz also sits on this committee, but I donít know his position on this issue. If Walz supports this legislation, he is in favor of bigger government, and would not represent the wishes of the First District of Minnesota.

We should cut down, not increase, the size of the federal government. According to the Office of Management and Budget, the federal government has almost 500 programs thatÝoperate at 50% efficiency. We donít need 50% of our taxes going down a rathole.

Herbert PeterÝ
Winona, Minn.

Do you promise?
To the Editor:

As a teacher of young children I often hear this phrase - "Do you promise?"

Do you promise to give it back?

Do you promise to be my friend?

Well, I have the same question for Ann Thompson and Mark Beyers - "Do you promise?"

"Ann, do you promise there will never be a state or federal prisoner housed in the new CJC, even if it is built to ACA specifications?"

"Mr. Beyers, do you promise there will never be an outdoor recreation area at the new CJC, even if the state mandates it in the future?"

When Mr. Warner gave you a chance to respond to the concerns we raised at the City Council meeting you both said you donít plan on these things happening. But we all know some things are out of our control. I know you canít promise these things wonít happen but I hope you havenít misled the public with your answers. I think itís important to consider all possibilities in a controversial project like the CJC.

Jan Klug
Caledonia, Minn.

Check the facts; call your commissioner
To the Editor:

The Board of Commissioners for Houston County has had to make a lot of difficult decisions in the past 14 years, not the least of which is addressing the lack of adequate facilities in the jail and overcrowding in many of the departments in the courthouse. We have continually shuffled and cobbled and patched while moving staff into smaller and smaller spaces that arenít providing for the privacy that is required when dealing with individuals and situations.

Generally speaking, this board has not been inclined to spend money without solid justification. We have paid as we go so to speak for the many advances in technology we have made that have kept us current and we are continuing to meet the demands of state and federal mandates.

We will continue to try and do whatís necessary to plan for the next 25-50 years. If you care to check any of the statements represented as facts that you have read about in the past several months, please call your commissioner.

Ann Thompson- 725-2169

Dave Corcoran- 894-4260

Larry Graf- 895-2290

Larry Connery- 896-3368

Tom Bjerke- 498-5310

Ann Thompson
Chairman, Houston County Board of Commissioners

$415,00 amount misleading
To the Editor:

On the front page of last weekís Argus Houston County Jail Administrator Mark Schiltz reported an amount of $415,586 spent on transportation and out of county housing for prisoners in 2006. This is an alarming dollar amount, one that I am not questioning. But please donít assume that building the new Criminal Justice Center will save the county this amount of money each year.

At an earlier meeting concerning the new CJC, costs of transporting and housing prisoners was the topic of a long discussion. At that meeting we were told that the cost of housing a prisoner at any jail is the same, regardless of the county. That means that the average price of $65 per day quoted in the article will also apply to those housed here in the new CJC. So the only real savings for the county will be the transportation costs for the adult prisoners, approximately $69,644 for 2006. Juveniles will still be transported and housed out of county because the CJC will not accommodate them.

While this is still a large amount of money, does it justify a $16-20 million jail? We have been saying all along that the CJC is too big. Would any other business be able to spend $16-20 million on a new building just to save $69,644 a year? The $69,644 savings wonít even begin to cover the interest on the loan!

Is this responsible government spending?

Bob Klug
Caledonia, Minn.

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Caledonia Argus
314 West Lincoln St.
P.O. Box 227
Caledonia, MN 55921-0227
507/724-3475

E-Mail: editor.argus@ecm-inc.com