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– Weekend Edition – VOLUME 174 • ISSUE 98 | $1.00
mtdemocrat.com
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2025
County moving forward with fee refunds Noel Stack Editor
Courtesy photos
Hayle Gibson-Stillwell and her horse Fancy break the arena record and win the Coeur D’Alene, Idaho rodeo earlier this year.
Born with a passion Local competes in the National Finals Rodeo Shelly Thorene Staff writer
U
nion Mine High School graduate Hayle Gibson-Stillwell, 34, is a fulltime barrel racer and the only female finalist from California competing in the National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas this week. The NFR is the premier championship of the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association and features the PRCA’s top money winners in the season for each event. The event is held the first week of December each year at the Thomas and Mack Center on the campus of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. World championship titles are awarded to competitors who earn the most money in their event through the year. Gibson-Stillwell learned to ride a horse at age 4 and began competing in the NorCal Junior Rodeo circuit and in Gymkhana at age 5. She earned her first buckle in a rodeo event at age 6. She went on to win numerous awards in high school, including the 2005 California Junior Pro Rodeo Queen title and represented District 3 as the California High School Rodeo Association Queen, 2007-09. District 3 comprises nine counties and teens who finish as one of the top five point leaders in different events qualify for state high school rodeo in Bishop. She was also runner-up in the 2008 state queen title and competed at the national and international level.
PLACE ADDRESS LABEL HERE
■ See RODEO, page A9
Union Mine High School grad Hayle Gibson-Stillwell hugs Fancy after they won the West Coast Finals in Tulare.
Ten years to the day Thomas and Helen Austin filed their lawsuit alleging the county and two special districts improperly collected impact fees while in violation of the California Mitigation Fee Act, El Dorado County supervisors set into motion a refund process for 1,800-plus property owners. At the Dec. 2 board meeting a motion was made by Supervisor Brian Veerkamp, seconded by Supervisor Lori Parlin and supported by Supervisors Brooke Laine and George Turnboo to: • Direct staff to issue partial refunds by direct payment to the current record owners of eligible parcels as of the last equalized assessment roll, with payment amounts prorated based on the proportional relationship between the amount of fees actually paid on an eligible parcel and the amount of funds subject to refund pursuant to the settlement agreements; and • Direct staff to develop a claims process to facilitate the refunds, proceed with the refunds once the claims process is implemented, Traffic Imact Fees and to return paid Dec. 2, 2014, to the board in approximately six through Nov. 15, 2016 months with a could be refunded. status update on the refunds. Supervisor Greg Ferrero was absent Tuesday. The settlement agreement negotiated over the summer and executed on Oct. 3 calls for the county to pay $9.5 million in Traffic Impact Fee refunds plus nearly $5.22 million in attorneys’ fees and a $50,000 stipend to the Austins. Veerkamp, who served on the board when the case was initially filed, said the outcome is unfortunate. The loser in the case is the county’s Road Fund, he lamented, and the winners are attorneys. Refunds will be issued to the current owner of record of the lots or units as identified on the most recent assessment roll (Aug. 20, 2025) of the development projects or individual projects on which impact fees were paid — as dictated by MFA language. The time period determined by the courts covers fees paid Dec. 2, 2014, through Nov. 15, 2016. “We are recommending the refunds be processed via direct payment,” County Counsel David Livingston told supervisors. “We think that’s likely the method that’s most consistent with people’s expectations when they hear the term refund. We think it’s the method that’s most ■ See REFUNDS, page A5
SHERIFF’S OFFICE BRINGS OUT THE BEARCAT for special holiday toy drive and community event
Shelly Thorene Staff writer
T
he third annual Toys from Bearcat event celebrated the spirit of giving with a family oriented event which included a drivethrough toy drop off from 7 a.m. to noon and a dinner and pictures with Santa at the Food Bank of El Dorado County on Business Drive in Cameron Park Monday night. The El Dorado County Sheriff Department along with the Shingle Springs/Cameron Park Chamber of Commerce, the Food Bank of El Dorado County and other community partners sponsored the event which included wine and beer from local businesses, raffle prizes and opportunities to meet local law enforcement and county officials. The evening began with opening remarks by the emcee, Shingle Springs/ Cameron Park Chamber President ■ See BEARCAT, page A5
Mountain Democrat photo by Shelly Thorene
Abigail Grinnell, 9, left and her sister Birdie, 7, right of El Dorado Hills pose for a photo next to Santa and the armored SWAT vehicle nicknamed the “Bearcat” at the Food Bank of El Dorado County.