To: Rep. Perry, L.,
Subject: Please read do not pass HB37
Date: 2014-02-10T01:12:07Z
Body:
My name is Mike Schultz. I own property along one of the streams that would be affected by HB37. I am also the President of the Northern Wasatch Home Builders Association for 2014. I ask you to please consider this issue very carefully. Please consider the following as well as a whole host of other potential problems for the property owners. Owning property along streams is and can be a lot of work. As a property owner we work hard to maintain the banks and property that borders the streams. In many cases we fence off sensitive areas so that the animals will not destroy the habitat causing the banks to get washed away during the high water season. If HB37 passes a landowner will not be able to keep the public out of those areas. Who ends up maintaining that once it is washed away? As a landowner we work hard and take a lot of pride in our property. It scares me to death to look along some of the streams that get high traffic and see how that property is treated, knowing that it could happen to my property. If you own it you take care of it because you are the one that has to maintain it. If you don't own it most people would not treat it the same way they would if they did own it. I have been on both sides of this fence. For the first 30 years of my life I did not own stream property. I was (and still am) the sportsman that goes and knocks on the private landowners doors asking him if I can fish or hunt along the stream or river. If you present yourself well and tell the landowner that you will follow whatever rules he wants, in most cases he will give you access through his property. The DWR has done a fantastic job working with landowners to open up access to miles and miles of streams to the public. This is a great program and a great solution to the problem because the DWR addresses the concerns of the landowner and in most cases does what is necessary to sure up the banks in the sensitive areas. It's a win win for the landowner and the sportsman. I believe that a person should have the right to float down the rivers and streams in Utah. But if that person has to walk on the banks and have the possibility of jeopardizing a property owners rights then that river or stream is to small to be allowing public access. If you think about all Utah's streams and the amount of water that flows down them during the "high water season", it would not take a very big stream to carry a timber 6" in diameter and 6' long. Most of Utah's smaller streams would fall into this category. If you feel a comprise needs to be reached in this matter please strongly consider changing the language to making it a slightly bigger timber or using the average flow of the stream instead of the high water flow of the stream. HB37 is not a compromise the way it is currently written. I really appreciate you taking the time to read this email and urge you to put yourself in the shoes of the landowner for a moment and understand the problems that will arise if HB37 passes. Sincerely, Mike Schultz 801-564-7618 Mike Schultz