WATSONVILLE, Calif. -- Down a Watsonville road, in a quiet rural community, you will find Bill Leach, the Mrs. and their pets.
So what could possibly disturb the peace?
"They put a hardship on us," said Bill Leach.
Leach is talking about the $115 CAL FIRE bill he recevied in October.
"This is something we did not expect to have to pay," said Leach.
Leach's home is one of thousands of rural homes who are now having to pay a fee to CAL FIRE to help in fire prevention efforts.
After Leach got the fee in October, he responded with a letter telling CAL FIRE he and his wife are senior citizens and don't have additional income to pay the bill.
"Where do we get the money? We can't pull it out of our butts. We can't go in our backyards and pick it off the trees. Because it doesn't exist," said Leach.
In response to his letter, CAL FIRE added interest to his initial fee, bringing the total fee to $127. They also told Leach, if he doesn't pay, the money owed will go to collections.
"I hate to have a threat over my head. I don't like that," said Leach.
Now Leach plans on fighting the fee and he is not alone.
"I don't think they are entitled to any of this money. At all," said Leach.
But the more Leach stands his ground and refuses to pay, the more interest he will get. Something Leach said is not fair, especially for senior citizens like him self.
"Senior citizen people have a budget, they have just so much money coming in," said Leach.
