The three levels of government are paying for three parts of the storm drainage system, not for the same system three times. It could be compared to a restaurant and seeing the menu with separate prices for appetizers, entrées, and a desserts. A la carte pricing does not mean that the diner has to pay three times for the same meal, but it does mean that the final bill will show three separate charges for food. With respect to the drainage district assessments, if district 21 or 23 charges a property, it is because the district commissioners have determined that the property receives a benefit from district activities. In most cases, for property that is not directly adjacent to a district-maintained main-line stream or ditch, it is because runoff from the property reaches the stream or ditch through either a private or municipal pipe or ditch or it is determined to reach the ditch through interflow.
Water Quality Monitoring
The City of Fife is charging for water quality monitoring, for funds to construct improvements to the local collection system, and for programs to support the legal mandate of the Federal Clean Water Act. Pierce County Surface Water Management has a variety of programs; the one with the greatest benefit to Fife is the maintenance of the Puyallup River levee system.