SACRAMENTO – George Runner, a vocal opponent of the State of California’s new “Fire Prevention Fee,” today released an update regarding its implementation.

“The state is currently mailing bills to San Bernardino County,” said Runner. “Up next is San Diego County, which will receive more than 100,000 bills—the most of any county. According to our schedule, the bills for the remaining counties will be out the door by December 11.”

The official mailing schedule—now complete—is available online.

According to Runner, the state has now mailed more than 450,000 bills to California property owners. More than 170,000 have paid their bills, yielding more than $20 million in revenue.

Thousands of Californians have filed paperwork to officially protest the tax, and tens of thousands have failed to pay at all. As of October 19, CALFIRE reports having received 18,321 appeals, with more than 5,399 arriving in just the last week.

Noting that more than 70,000 bills have gone past-due without being paid, Runner stressed the importance of timeliness.

“It’s an illegal tax, and I fully expect the courts will strike it down,” said Runner. “But until then, if you receive a bill, you ought to pay it,” said Runner. “Taxpayers who refuse to pay could face penalties as high as 20% a month.”

In related news, the State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection will hold a December 5 hearing to consider permanent regulations for the fire “fee” program. The meeting will be held at:

California Resources Building Auditorium

1416 Ninth Street, Sacramento. California

8 AM, Wednesday, December 5

The public is invited to submit written comments by e-mail to board.public.comments@fire.ca.gov or by mail to:

Mr. George Gentry, Executive Officer

Board of Forestry and Fire Protection

P.O. Box 944246

Sacramento, CA 94244-2460

Written comments are due by Tuesday, November 20.

Elected in November 2010, George Runner represents more than nine million Californians as a member of the State Board of Equalization. To help inform California taxpayers, Runner has established a website, calfirefee.com, providing the latest fire tax news and information.