Lake Lanier Shore Sweep 2009 and Bethel Park Town Hall Meeting

Dear List Members,

The Lake Lanier Association is pleased to announce Shore Super Sweep 2009, an ongoing volunteer program to clean up the shoreline of Lake Lanier.  Because of the low water levels, large amounts of trash are still exposed on the shore around the lake.  The Lake Lanier Association has arranged for designated dumpsters at three sites around Lake Lanier for disposal of trash that volunteers collect.

Two dumpsters are available for trash drop off via lake access only; Chestnut Ridge Park boat ramp, and a location on the south side of Young Deer.  The Chestnut Ridge Park boat ramp can be accessed between FB2 and FB4, and the ramp is in the last cove on the west side of the park, close to its entrance.  The Forsyth County dumpster is between YD4 and YD5 on the south side of the creek.  Volunteers disposing of collected trash by vehicle may go to Gainesville Marina, where a dumpster is in place at the south boat ramp.

The Lake Lanier Association thanks W.L. Hailey and Company for the use of their dumpster on Young Creek, the Corps of Engineers, Lake Lanier Islands and Gainesville Marina.

This ongoing program is made possible by a generous grant the Lake Lanier Association received last year from the BoatUS Foundation.  The association thanks J & J Disposal for their continued support.  Any groups wishing to plan an organized clean up may arrange it through the association office.

Please mark your calendars for the 21st Annual Shore Sweep on September 19, 2009.  For more information, please call the association at 770-503-7757 visit their Web site at www.lakelanier.org.

Bethel Park Town Hall Meeting

The Lake Lanier Association has received an email from Forsyth County Commissioner Patrick Bell with details of a Town Hall Meeting on March 3 regarding Bethel Park.

Forsyth County District 4 Commissioner Patrick Bell will hold a town hall meeting regarding Bethel Park Tuesday, March 3 at 6:30 PM. The meeting will be held at Chestatee Elementary School, located at 6945 Keith Bridge Road (Highway 306).

This will not be a Q&A session, the format will follow standard Public Comments to allow attendees as much an opportunity to provide input and comments regarding Bethel Park.  The time scheduled is 1 1/2 hours with 45 minutes afforded both proponents and opponents.

For those not aware of the issue, Forsyth County and the US Army Corps of Engineers are currently in litigation.  Forsyth County claims the Corps did not offer Bethel Park to the county prior to offering it to the YMCA.  The YMCA has proposed building a summer camp facility and Forsyth County had proposed an RV Park and Learning Center.  Forsyth County filed suit against the Corps of Engineers and has a hearing pending.

Tri-States Litigation Motion for Summary Judgment January 2009

Download the Tri-States Litigation Motion for Summary Judgment January 2009 here.

A Motion for Summary Judgment and supporting Memorandum of Law submitted by the Lake Lanier Association , the State of Georgia, the Atlanta Regional Commission, and a number of water supply providers are included in the documentation now being reviewed by the federal judge during Phase 1 of the Tri-States ‘Water Wars’ litigation over the allocation of water in the Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint (ACF) basin. Judge Paul A. Magnuson, a U.S. District Court Judge from Minnesota, is presiding over the seven cases in this litigation in the US District Court in Jacksonville.
Judge Magnuson has organized these court proceedings into two phases.

The focus of the first phase is primarily on the Corps’ operation of Lake Lanier for municipal and industrial water supply.  As such, Phase 1 will address the original statutory authorization for the creation of Lake Lanier.  Florida, Alabama, and the Southeastern Federal Power Customers maintain that Lake Lanier was created for flood control, navigation and power generation only and that Lake Lanier should not be operated for purposes of supporting municipal water supply and recreation. The Lake Lanier Association, along with the other Georgia parties, contends that water supply and recreation are of equal importance as flood control, navigation and power generation.  Motions for summary judgment in Phase 1 were submitted by all parties on January 23, 2009; respondents’ opposing motions are due by March 2 and replies to these by March 25.  Judge Magnuson has scheduled a hearing on all parties’ motions for May 8, in which the Lake Lanier Association’s attorney, Clyde Morris, will participate.

The second phase of the litigation will focus primarily on the US Army Corps of Engineers’ management of the ACF basin under the Interim Operations Plan it instituted in April, 2006.  Phase 2 will thus include consideration of competing water flow requirements of the ACF for water supply, recreation, and endangered species in the Apalachicola River. The judge has not yet set deadlines for this phase.

As you know, the Lake Lanier Association is the only intervener in this litigation that is not either a government entity or a utility operator, and is the only party dedicated to representing the interests of LakeLanier individual and business stakeholders.  We appreciate your support of our efforts to safeguard the interests of all LakeLanier stakeholders in this important litigation.

The Motion for Summary Judgment can be read in its entirety (84 pages) on our Web site at. Please download the Tri-States Litigation Motion for Summary Judgment January 2009 here.

Boat Owners May Have Federal Tax Benefits Available

NEWS From BoatU.S.
Boat Owners Association of The United States
880 S. Pickett St., Alexandria, VA 22304
BoatU.S. News Room at http://www.BoatUS.com/news/releases.asp

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Press Contact: Scott Croft, 703-461-2864, SCroft@BoatUS.com

ALEXANDRIA, Va., January 19, 2009 – Recreational boat owners who paid state sales taxes on a boat purchase, or those who secured a bank loan to finance a boat, may have some tax deductions available when filing their 2008 federal income tax return.

The Sales Tax Deduction

For boat owners who paid substantial state sales taxes on a new or used boat purchase last year, the Tax Extenders Act of 2008 signed by President Bush on October 3 continues to offer a federal tax benefit with a deduction for state sales taxes. Boaters must choose either the state sales tax deduction or state income tax deduction on their federal tax return — you cannot take both.

In addition, to take the state sales tax deduction, the sales tax on a boat purchase must be applied at the same tax rate as the state’s general sales tax. In order to claim the sales tax deduction, tax returns must be itemized. State sales taxes are entered on IRS form Schedule A, line 5b.

The Boat Loan Deduction

For those owners with a secured boat loan, mortgage interest paid on the loan may be deductible from your federal income taxes. Taxpayers may use the “second home” mortgage interest deduction for one primary home and one second home and must itemize deductions on their returns. A boat is considered a second home for federal tax purposes if it has a galley, a head, and sleeping berth.

Some boaters may be unaware of this potential tax benefit because not all lending institutions send borrowers an Internal Revenue Service form 1098 which reports the interest paid. Not receiving the form does not preclude taking the deduction. If a 1098 is not available, boaters should contact their lender for the amount of interest paid and should enter it on line 11 on Schedule A along with the lender’s tax ID number. If a form 1098 is sent, boaters should simply enter the amount on line 10 of Schedule A.

Sorry, AMT

For those who fall under the Alternative Minimum Tax, most deductions are unavailable as taxes are calculated differently. Boaters are urged to contact a tax preparer or financial advisor for more information.

For more details on the mortgage deduction, go to http://www.IRS.gov and download Publication 936 or the Fact Sheets. For state tax deduction information download Publication 600, which also includes state-by-state tax tables.

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About BoatU.S.:
BoatU.S. – Boat Owners Association of The United States – is the nation’s leading advocate for recreational boaters providing its 600,000 members with government representation, programs and money saving services. For membership information visit http://www.BoatUS.com or call 800-395-2628.

Information on Supreme Court Decision

Dear List Members, Earlier this week the US Supreme Court made a decision as to whether the court would hear the appeal of a case concerning water storage in Lake Lanier.

Our attorney, Clyde Morris, who is representing us in the Tri-States litigation, has provided the following information about this decision and its relevance to Lake Lanier.

U.S. SUPREME COURT’S DENIAL OF CERTIORARI IN GEORGIA vs FLORIDA

In this case, the Corps, Georgia, the Atlanta area water supply providers, and the Southeastern Federal Power Customers (SeFPC) entered into a settlement agreement in a lawsuit filed by the SeFPC to obtain compensation for power generation that was allegedly being foregone due to management of LakeLanier for water supply purposes. Florida and Alabama intervened and challenged the agreement. The primary issue in the case was whether the settlement agreement should be upheld. The DC District Court ruled that it would, but later the DC Circuit Court of Appeals reversed and said it would not. Georgia appealed the Circuit Court’s ruling to the Supreme Court.

On January 12, 2009, the US Supreme Court denied certiorari in the case, meaning that it refused to entertain Georgia’s appeal. There was a very small chance that the Supreme Court would accept the appeal, because only a very small percentage of cases appealed to the Supreme Court are accepted and those that are must present questions that the Court deems worthy of its review. So, the Court’s decision not to allow the appeal is of little surprise to anyone. The question is: what, if any, affect will the Supreme Court’s decision NOT to hear the appeal have on us?

The immediate effect is that there is no change in the status quo in the Water Rights litigation. While it could have been beneficial if the Supreme Court had granted the appeal, we would have benefited only if the Court had ruled in Georgia’s favor on the merits of the case. Since that avenue is now moot, we will simply continue with the Water Rights litigation already going on in Florida, according to the schedule already established by that Court.

It is important to understand that it was primarily dicta (language in the DC Circuit Court’s ruling that isn’t authoritative) that has given rise to Florida’s and Alabama’s now-famous argument that water supply is not an authorized purpose of LakeLanier. I expect Judge Magnuson to include a ruling regarding that argument as part of our litigation. That issue will be addressed in Phase 1, while the claims of primary importance to the LLA – regarding the Corp’s draw-down of water in the Lake – will be addressed later, in Phase 2.

Season’s Greetings from The Lake Lanier Association

In this joyous season, we send our thanks to all our members for their continued generosity and support of our efforts to protect Lake Lanier.

With best wishes for a happy holiday season from your board of directors,

Jackie Joseph, Val Perry, Paul Flood, Tammy Levi, Wilton Rooks, Roger Bauer, Gerald McCarley, Vicki Barnhorst, Gordon Brand, Jim Hazelwood, Patsy Kilmartin, Casey King, Bev Nicholls and Charlie Rittenhouse

www.lakelanier.org

1071 Coalition Kick Off Meeting

Dear List Members,
We want to remind you of the upcoming kick off meeting of the 1071 Coalition at the Legacy Lodge and Conference Center on Lake Lanier Islands at 6:00 PM on Tuesday, December 9th. One of our board officers, Wilton Rooks, vice president of technology programs, is on the agenda and will be a presenter.

The Coalition has a single focus on restoring Lake Lanier to at least its current full pool level of 1,071 feet in elevation, and one of the Coalition’s primary tasks in support of this goal is to sponsor an updated economic impact study of Lake Lanier on the surrounding area. The focus of this study will be to highlight the importance of the top 10 feet of the lake to the lake economy.

If you are interested in attending, please contact the coalition office directly to RSVP by calling 770-458-6311 or emailing Rebecca Wallace at rebecca@1071Coalition.org.

For access to Lake Lanier Islands, please identify yourself at the gate as an attendee at this event.

For more information on the 1071 Coalition, please visit their Web site.

Vicki Barnhorst
The Lake Lanier Association

Call to Action and Updates

Dear List Members,

You have until November 21 to submit your comments to the Corps on the rewrite of their Water Control Plan.

If you were unable to attend the Corps’ Scoping Meeting in Gainesville on October 29, you may submit your comments on the Water Control Manual Update and Environmental Impact Statement / Chattahoochee – Flint River Basin on the Corps’ Web site until November 21, 2008.

Please submit a form online, or send a letter to their address:

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Mobile District
107 Saint Francis Street, Suite 1403
Mobile, AL 36602-9986

Please include the following points in your comments:

• During the rainy season, the Corps should allow Lake Lanier to reach full pool no later than June 1;
• Lake Lanier should not be drawn down for mussels and other endangered species in the Apalachicola River;
• Management triggers must be in place for Lake Lanier withdrawals during times of drought;
• Raise Lake Lanier’s full pool from 1071 ft above sea level to 1073 ft, thereby adding an additional 26 billion gallons of water to the lake.

Legal Donations

We thank all of you who have generously responded to our legal fund drive and sent in your donations.  We need everybody’s support, so if you have not had a chance to respond, please print out the donation form and send in your donation. You may also donate on our Web site.

Please note that a contribution of stock can be contributed to the Lake Lanier Association (a 501-C-3 organization) through our account with Fidelity Investments. The donor will be eligible to take a contribution deduction on their income tax return for the fair value of the stock on the date of gift. The donor does not have to pay income taxes on the difference in the donor’s basis in the stock and the fair market value on the date of the gift. The donor may desire to consult with their income tax adviser before making such gifts.  For more information on the account, please email us.

1071 Coalition
In our October newsletter we informed you about the newly formed 1071 Coalition.  Please note that their first public meeting date as included in our October newsletter, has been changed to December 9 at 6 pm at Legacy Lodge, Lake Lanier Islands.  Please contact the 1071 Coalition directly to respond.
As always, thank you for your support of our work on behalf of all Lake Lanier stakeholders.

Sincerely,
Vicki Barnhorst
The Lake Lanier Association

Reminder about Important Deadline and Meeting Next Week

UPDATE:

If you were unable to attend the Corps’ Scoping Meeting in Gainesville on October 29, you may submit your comments on the Water Control Manual Update and Environmental Impact Statement / Chattahoochee – Flint River Basin on the Corps’ Web site until November 21, 2008. Please follow the link or send a letter to their address. www.acf-wcm.com. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Mobile District. 107 Saint Francis Street Suite 1403, Mobile, AL 36602-9986

Dear List Members,

Please remember an important deadline coming up next Monday and the Corps’ Scoping Meeting on Wednesday.
Monday is the deadline for your comments on the Georgia Environmental Protection Division’s request to the Corps to reduce the minimum amount of flow in the Chattahoochee River at Peachtree Creek in Atlanta by 13% between November 1, 2008 and April 30, 2009.  This will reduce this flow from 485 million gallons a day (MGD) to 420 MGD, thereby leaving an additional 11.7 billion gallons of water in Lake Lanier.

If you haven’t done so already, please take a few minutes and complete the online comment form by Monday, October 27.

~~~

Please attend the Corps of Engineers’ public scoping meeting on Wednesday, October 29 from 5- 8 p.m. at the Georgia Mountains Center in Gainesville.  This meeting is part of the Corps’ review and update of the Water Control Manual for the Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint (ACF) River Basin.  Attendees will have the opportunity to give their feedback on the issues and concerns regarding the process.  The meetings will be set up in an open-house format allowing attendees to review specific basin information.

This meeting is your opportunity to record your views on management of Lake Lanier with the Corps and show the Corps how important Lake Lanier is to you. Attendees will be able to submit their comments at a computer station, by talking to a court reporter or by submitting prepared written comments.

Please include the following significant areas in your comments:

Lake Lanier should not be drawn down for mussels and other endangered species in the Apalachicola River;
During the rainy season, the Corps should allow Lake Lanier to reach full pool no later than June 1;
Management triggers must be in place for Lake Lanier withdrawals during times of drought;
Raise Lake Lanier’s full pool from 1071 ft above sea level to 1073 ft, thereby adding an additional 26 billion gallons of water to the lake.

Please share this information with your friends and neighbors so there’s a great turnout at this meeting!

Vicki Barnhorst
The Lake Lanier Association

LLA Meets with U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to Discuss Lake Levels

Dear List Members,

Your association has been very busy over the last few weeks meeting with Corps’ officials to discuss lake levels.

Meetings with the Corps

As you may have read, a delegation of Georgia legislators met on July 9 in DC with the Undersecretary of the Army who oversees the Corps of Engineers and discussed Lake Lanier lake levels and management.  The Lake Lanier Association prepared and provided an indepth presentation to the legislators who used it to form the basis of their discussion and requests.

We requested a meeting with Brig. Gen. Schroedel, commander of the Corps’ South Atlantic division, to discuss the Corps’ management of the lake and met with him on July 16.   Representing the association were Val Perry, Executive Vice President, Wilton Rooks, Vice President, and Clyde Morris, LLA legal council.  Also attending were John Heard, Georgia State House Representative, Gwinnett County, Dr. Carol Couch, Director Georgia EPD, Virgil Williams, Lake Lanier Islands Resort and other Lake Lanier Islands representatives.

We made a detailed presentation on our assessment of the Corps’ Revised Interim Operating Plan’s (RIOP) impact on Lake Lanier and suggested modifications to this RIOP to help keep more water in Lake Lanier.

Tri-States Lawsuits
Florida, Alabama, and the Southeastern Federal Power Customers (SeFPC) all filed motions in the Tri-State Water Rights Litigation recently seeking to push the Corps’ current management of Lake Lanier to the back burner and turn the court’s attention instead to a tangential issue regarding water supply contracts that would have little bearing on the more serious issue of preserving Lake Lanier’s water.  They are trying to take advantage of a court decision issued several months ago in a related case that invalidated a settlement agreement among Georgia, the SeFPC, and various Georgia water supply providers regarding allocation of storage space in Lake Lanier for north Georgia’s water supply needs.  The LLA views the motions as a tactic that would divert attention away from the disastrous 2007 draw-down of the Lake and the real possibility that a further significant draw-down could occur again in 2008, now that we are entering the driest part of the year.  For that reason, the LLA categorically opposed the motions.  On Friday, the LLA and all the other Georgia parties to the litigation opposed the motions in documents filed with the court. These filings may be viewed on our Web site.

More information on our activities concerning lake levels can be found in the July issue of our newsletter, Lanier Outlook.  If you are not a member of the Lake Lanier Association we hope you will join and support our work.  Members receive our bi-monthly newsletters, invitations to our meetings and special notices.

Request for Support
The Lake Lanier Association appreciates all the financial support you have generously donated enabling us to be an intervener in all the Tri-States lawsuits.  We are the only organization representing the lake in those suits, and we are asking for your continued support of our efforts by donating to our legal fund.You may send a check marked legal donation to our office at the address below or may contribute on our Web site

Thank you very much.

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to hold public meetings for the Apalachicola Chattahoochee Flint (ACF) River Basin

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Mobile District, will hold five public scoping meetings during October as part of its review and update of the Water Control Manual for the Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint (ACF) River Basin. The public is invited to attend the scoping meetings which will provide information on the Manual update process.  Attendees will have the opportunity to give their feedback on the issues and concerns regarding the process.  The meetings will be set up in an open-house format allowing attendees to review specific basin information.

The meeting for our area will be held on October 29 from 5 p.m.—8 p.m. at Georgia Mountains Center, 301 Main Street, SW, Gainesville, GA 30501 (770-534-8420).

The Water Control Manual provides guidance for the management of federal reservoirs in the same river system and will include water release guidelines for Lake Lanier. The Corps wrote the last ACF Water Control Manual almost fifty years ago at a time when the demands on the system were far less than today.  As you know, Lake Lanier provides the major water storage for the entire system. Downstream needs include water supply for municipalities, industry and agriculture, hydropower dams and power plants in the entire basin.

This meeting is your opportunity to record your views on management of Lake Lanier with the Corps of Engineers and show the Corps how important Lake Lanier is to you. Attendees will be able to submit their comments at a computer station, by talking to a court reporter or by submitting prepared written comments.

• Please include the following significant areas in your comments:
• Lake Lanier should not be drawn down for mussels and other endangered species in the Apalachicola River;
• During the rainy season, the Corps should allow Lake Lanier to reach full pool no later than June 1
• Management triggers must be in place for Lake Lanier withdrawals during times of drought;
• Raise Lake Lanier’s full pool from 1071 ft above sea level to 1073 ft, thereby adding an additional 26 billion gallons of water to the lake.

We look forward to seeing all our members at the meeting.  Let your friends and neighbors on the lake know how important this meeting is and ask them to attend.

Corps Press Release