San Bernardino County Supervisorial candidate Neil Derry (District 3) issued a press release in which the 2008 Board hopeful blasts county government for "overcharging victims of the October 2007 fires for the cost of cleaning up their properties."

Neil Derry is blasting his opponent for voting to approve a county ordinance that, according to Derry, would result in cleanup costs reaching $35,000.

Neil Derry, a San Bernardino city councilmember, will face incumbent Dennis Hansberger in the June 2008 election for the Board of Supervisors' Third District.

Here is the press release from the Neil Derry for Supervisor Campaign:

Neil Derry Criticizes County Government For Imposing Exorbitant Cleanup Costs on Local Fire Victims

Councilman Neil Derry today blasted San Bernardino County for overcharging victims of the October 2007 fires for the cost of cleaning up their properties.

"The County's decision to bypass less expensive local businesses and hire a pricey outside firm will cost 3rd District fire victims thousands of dollars in overcharges to clean up their fire-damaged or destroyed properties," said Derry.

"Under the County's plan, fire victims are being assessed $28,000 to $35,000 per site to have their property cleaned up," continued Derry, who noted that excessive cleanup costs are often not covered by the property owner's insurance. "This amount is far in excess of the $10,000 per site cost to clean up the properties of City of San Bernardino residents victimized by the Old Fire."

"Local businesses like Aon Incorporated of Bloomington and Woody's Tree Removal of Hesperia have provided comparable fire cleanup services in the City of San Bernardino for a much lower cost than the outside firm hired by the County," declared Derry. "The cleanup costs being imposed on fire victims by the County certainly appear exorbitant."

"Once again, Supervisor Hansberger has dropped the ball and failed to protect fire victims," stated Derry. "First he was a no-show at the Lake Arrowhead community fire summit meeting on November 1st. Then he approves a cleanup plan that unfairly hits fire victims in the pocketbook."

"Too often in past fire tragedies, local residents have been taken advantage of by unscrupulous contractors. I hope this is not the case here," concluded Derry.