Yeah, but does fighting work?

Thinking of the Stakeholders' Advisory Committee group that is reviewing GVW's Master Water Plan 2012--a direct result of the formation of Citizens for Changes to the Master Water Plan--a question lingers:  "Yeah, but does fighting work?"

The Vancouver Province newspaper included the following article in their February 3rd, 2016, issue:

"It's time to fight spreading 'MSP-itis' at city halls, Jordan Bateman, B.C. director, Canadian Taxpayers Federation.


"Sound the alarm:  the provincial government's MSP-itis is spreading.

For years, the B.C. government has separated the Medical Services Plan tax from income taxes as a way to make income taxes appear lower.  It's a hat trick for government:  they still get their money, they get to claim they have the lowest income tax rates in Canada and they get to brag at election time that they didn't raise your income taxes.

Now it appears cities are catching the bug.

"Where has all the money gone that we already sent to city hall?

  Why haven't those continual tax increases

 been invested in infrastructure?

  The truth your mayor doesn't want you to know

 is that most councils have blown all that extra money

 on wages and benefits".  J.Bateman

Around B.C., municipal councils are introducing or hiking infrastructure levies, carving them out from the overall property tax rate.  This lets them give taxpayers the impression that they are dutifully holding the line on property tax increases, while still taking more money from homeowners.

Surrey has a very bad case of MSP-itis.
In 2007, the city introduced a 'temporary' five-year 'road levy' in order to fund traffic calming -- then kept it and hiked it.  Surrey also added a surprise $100-per-property 'recreation and culture levy' days after the 2014 election -- and increased it this year by 10 per cent.  Yet the mayor still brags that they have one of the lowest property tax rates in the region.

Lake Country politicians pat themselves on the back for freezing property tax rates this year, but also brought in a $125-per-property 'transportation for tomorrow tax.'  That's MSP-itis in its purest form.

The disease is spreading.  Cranbrook brought in a new 'dedicated road tax' this year.  West Vancouver is contemplating an 'asset levy', a separate taxation scheme to fund infrastructure replacement.

Road levy.  Recreation and culture levy.  Transportation for tomorrow tax.  Dedicated road tax.  Asset levy.  By any other name, MSP-itis smells just as bleak.

Make no mistake, we want our cities to invest in infrastructure.  Sewer, water, roads; these are core responsibilities of local government and should be given priority.

But repacking this spending with a new tax is a slap in the face, especially given the steady, never-ending march of property tax hikes.

Where has all the money gone that we already sent to city hall?  Why haven't those continual tax increases been invested in infrastructure?

The truth your mayor doesn't want you to know is that most councils have blown all that extra money on wages and benefits -- not on repairing or building infrastructure.

In Surrey, for example, tax revenue grew by $66.5 million from 2010 to 2014.  But salaries, contracted services and the RCMP contract grew by $68.9 million.  Those new tax dollars, whether from new properties or hiked rates, didn't go to infrastructure.

Lake Country brought in $1.85 million more in taxes in 2014 than 2010, but spent $2.85 million more in salaries and contracted services.  Again, that's money that didn't go to infrastructure.

Sadly, while the provincial government's MSP-itis has spread like wildfire, its commitment to holding staff salaries in check has been completely ignored by municipalities.  A 2014 Ernst & Young study found that city hall wages had grown twice as fast as provincial government wages over the past decade.

No wonder cities are pushing to care out 'dedicated' MSP-like taxes for infrastructure.  After all, who could oppose better roads or renewing sewer systems?

Taxpayers need to vaccinate their municipal councils against MSP-itis and the only way to do that is to make themselves heard.  If your community is looking to bring in a new infrastructure levy, push back.

Demand that costs savings be found within city hall and that money be re-prioritized to these bread-and-butter issues. 

Ask why recent property tax hikes haven't been sufficient to cover this vital investments.

Ask how much of new property tax revenue has gone to staffing in recent years.

Only together can we stop MSP-itis."      Jordan Bateman, BC director, CTF

"Has he seen what Greater Vernon Water is doing in the North Okanagan?" says Kia, adding "does he know that today's customers are funding infrastructure for people that will reside here in 40 years!"

We won't even mention salaries and benefits!
By the way, those government wages have unfunded pension liability...yup...