After months of intermittent deliberations, the Gulf Islands’ two major governing bodies have finalized their budgets for the coming year.
The Islands Trust passed an $11.2-million budget last week, for a 5.8 per cent increase over the previous year. For the Capital Regional District (CRD), the Salt Spring Island-wide amount is $8.97 million and a 10.06 per cent hike; the Southern Gulf Islands will see a 5.82 per cent increase from $4.1-million in CRD expenditures.
We’ve recently heard lots about what “democracy” means, but one firm tenet is the connection between voters’ bank accounts and government services. It’s pretty simple: when voters pay for services through taxes, elected officials and staff are accountable to them. That means taxpayers should be treated with respect.
Both the Islands Trust and CRD invite public input on their budgets, and the Trust has in the past included a public survey in its budget-setting process, so that’s one positive sign.
Both bodies also engage in lengthy and highly transparent budget deliberations. (Sometimes it seems elected reps and staff spend more time talking about ensuing budgets than doing the work outlined in them, but that’s obviously not true.)
Some elected officials make efforts to reduce planned expenditures as much as possible, questioning the need for specific line items or the amount listed. Eliminating $10,000 from this or that budget column might seem trivial and not worth the effort, but taking those steps is about more than dollar figures. When elected officials take the time to consider each expenditure and whether or not it really needs to be in the budget this year, they may just want to avoid public flak, but they are also giving due respect to the people who are paying the bills. A $10, $20 or $50 saving may be irrelevant to most Gulf Islands property owners, but when budgets presented for consideration by staff are scrutinized and reduced in considered ways, that is a demonstration of respect and it’s appreciated.
Few people will be happy about property tax bills growing more than the rate of inflation as they will this year — and not just in Islands Trust and CRD realms — but at least in our country there is still an opportunity for the paying public to speak up and be respected.