An Honour Knowing You, Bob!

It most certainly was an honour to know Bob Spiers, who passed away suddenly on Monday, June 25th.

"Like a dog with a bone," he was said by several people of the way in which Bob analyzed and handled topics.

And I saw it myself.
I remain grateful today for Bob's efforts on my behalf, when no-one else seemed to care.

Even though he was a City of Vernon councillor, and Highlands Golf is in Coldstream's jurisdiction, when I had a huge huge problem with the Regional District Greater Vernon Water regarding the annual rate I was being charged for my business' private fire hydrant, Bob not only chewed on that bone, he reduced the bone to smithereens!

Bob Spiers...councillor extraordinaire, an honourable man

During several of the monthly meetings, he even proved to his peers--Greater Vernon Advisory Committee members from both Vernon and Coldstream--that the manager (McTaggart) of the Greater Vernon Water authority had provided spurious information to the committee re my fire hydrant "private" rates.  And those of others, as it was discovered by Bob Spiers.

Spurious information?
Well, I call it outright lies that McTaggart spewed to meetings.
And Bob Spiers proved it with his analysis of data that McTaggart himself had provided.

While my blog stories at the time didn't give Bob credit, it was through Bob Spiers' analyses that my business was allowed to receive fairness and parity.

Background blog stories:
here, and here, and here.
And here.

Bob Spiers appreciated fairness and accuracy and truth.
And he reminded Greater Vernon Advisory Committee members that they should, too.

Thank you Bob...
rest in peace.
Your caring and dedication and commitment were so important to me.

Way to Go, Bob

and thank you for what you do!

Bob Spiers, city of Vernon Councillor is at it again.
And we should all be grateful for his efforts.

Efforts...plural.
Because he's done it before.

The present Tax on a Tax petition already has 444 signatures from British Columbia alone (we in British Columbia have had the dubious pleasure of paying carbon taxes since 2008 when Premier Clark enacted the law.)

Canadians appear to have forgotten that they have something called "choice"

Rather than steal Bob's thunder, we'll send you to Bob's blog to click on the petition link and add your name.  And please send the story/link to ALL your email contacts in Canada!

Petition to the Government of Canada
Whereas:
The Government of British Columbia instituted a carbon tax in 2008 and the federal government GST (currently at 5%) is still being charged on this carbon tax.
We, the undersigned, citizens of Canada, call upon the Government of Canada to eliminate the GST being charged on this or any other future carbon tax enacted by the provinces or territories. 


"Once government gets a taste of a new tax," Kia would've mused "its appetite isn't easily sent back to the diet table."


Remember to send the petition link (from Bob's blog, provided above) to all your Canadian email contacts.

Do it now.

Not sure why you're signing?
Well, in case you've spent the last number of years under a rock...click for explanations:
 
What is carbon tax?  
By the way, carbon tax failed in Australia.  Maybe we can hope for the same here in Canada...eventually.
What is GST?

Then...crawl out from under the rock.
 

Middle-of-the-night email?

Holy cow, talk about ramming.

Coldstream Councillor Kiss was overheard saying that "the email arrived at 1:30 in the morning", referring to Greater Vernon Water's 2016 draft budget, only scant hours before the meeting!

"I would've wanted more time to check out the details of the 30-page submission," said Vernon councillor Bob Spiers in his blog.

No kidding.

Rather than attaching the proposed budget's 30 pages, this blog has the link to GVW's 2016 Rate Increase proposal covers 6 pages here in an easy-to-read format.
 

Source:  Citizens for Changes to the Master Water Plan

From GVW's proposed budget, $655,000 will go towards reserves.

Five million dollars is slated for new projects (any projects over $5 million must go to public referendum) and $4 million for work carried over from 2015. 

"Wasn't the $4 million for work carried over from 2015 already in reserves?" questions Kia.

And the Kal Lake intake was already approved (i.e. budgeted for?), n'est ce pas?


The Morning Star newspaper, on January 31st, 2016, helps bureaucrats get their message across (in more ways than one), as follows.

"Water work adds up to $19 million, by Rolke:

There's a lot on tap for Greater Vernon's water utility in 2016.

The Greater Vernon Advisory Committee approved a $19 million budget for the water utility during a special meeting Thursday.

"The projects presented are reasonable.  We're trying to replace old infrastructure," said Juliette Cunningham.

The budget includes $5 million for new projects and $4 million for work carried over from 2015.

Among those moving ahead are replacing water meters, expanding dam capacity and extending the Kal Lake intake.

Overall water rates are climbing two per cent, and Cunningham says that's necessary given the scope of work required.

"It's a big system and many parts of it are quite old," she said.

Opposition to the water budget came from directors Bob Spiers and Gyula Kiss.

"I was reluctant to let it go without further study," said Spiers.  "We had no details until 8 a.m. (Thursday).  We could have waited another week or two before making a decision."

However, Spiers says his opposition was more procedural than it was against the budget details.

"I didn't see anything that should be thrown out but when there are 30 pages of figures, it should have more review," he said.

 "GVW could double their revenue by presenting a proposed rate sheet to GVAC twice a year," grins Kia.

They haven't tried that...yet.

"Cooperation" versus "Agreement"

A difference exists between the two definitions.
Splitting hairs, it could be said, but with consequences. 

Today's Morning Star story "Co-operation key for RDNO" in which Chair Rick Fairbairn is quoted as saying "...shows a spirit of cooperation among the partners" puts yet another layer over the veil of transparency in this area's governance.

It also masks with misinformation (to residents) the Board's plans following the November 2014 failure of the $70 million borrowing referendum for the Master Water Plan.

First, the definitions:

cooperation:  "assistance, especially by ready compliance with requests".

agreement:  "the absence of incompatibility between two things; consistency".

Three significant events have occurred since the referendum failure:

• local election candidates' waffling on referendum support:  (first in support, then not--as the election loomed--then following the election--back toeing the line).  Seems almost to a person, candidates waffled more on whom to serve--the public, or their peers--rather than holding an educated and intelligent opinion on a topic. 
• outspoken Master Water Plan critic Gyula Kiss was--for years--an island at GVAC.  His divergent opinions were barely tolerated by peers.  That "island" position equated to Kiss never having a seconder for motions he submitted.  Until Vernon councillor Bob Spiers--decidedly a free-thinker--saw the merits of Kiss' analytical and intelligent motions--and seconded them.  They were each serving their constituents first and foremost.  There were now two islands, with seconded motions now legitimized and recorded in minutes, despite a lack of additional support.   The situation now was obviously intolerable to the pack around the table.  In short order Coldstream Mayor Garlick tossed Gyula Kiss from GVAC, replacing him with Doug Dirk as director (all under the  pretense/guise of a voting terms of reference that excluded an "alternate" committee member).  The consequence?  GVAC is once again back to "the absence of incompatibility".  Meaning: agreement.  And partly--ready compliance with requests--to agree.  Thinking people will equate the mayor's action to one of betraying his constituents and his councillor.
• Citizens for Changes to the Master Water Plan, a grassroots group promoting change to water rates via consideration of an alternative water source in the North Okanagan, formed and quickly received ~1,000 signatures on their petition.  This led to GVAC denying CCMWP's request for an independent professional review of the MWP--however a volunteer Stakeholders' Advisory Committee of area water users was decided on by GVAC, with monthly meetings that began in October of 2015.  Meetings were conducted by GVW bureaucrats, with Jim Garlick and Juliette Cunningham heading the discussion table as volunteers listened to MWP consultants summarizing the ~1,000 pages of technical memoranda.  This was called a peer review -- an "evaluation of scientific, academic, or professional work by others working in the same field."  (Ahem!)  The group, the Morning Star story said, "will also continue to meet in 2016 to discuss the future of Greater Vernon's water utility..."

To discuss the future of Greater Vernon's water utility?

"Cool," says Kia, "the utility's future is thrown into the mix."

 
Mayor Garlick, the cooperator...the person that agrees, the betrayer.