March 27, 2012 Council Meeting

At this weeks council meeting, Councillors Riddell and Wlodarczak brought forward a number of proposed policies on Election Campaigns, Priority Fund Expenditures, Communications, Social Media, and Protocol.

The proposed policies are on the County website  under Departments/Legislative and Legal/ Council Meetings/ Reports or http://www.strathcona.ca/files/Files/at-lls-arm-120327-report9.1.pdf

All but one of the policies presented got unanimous Council accolades and approval. For a live view of the discussion view the taped webcast.

The Priority Fund Expenditures Policy was postponed until April 10, 2012 and I am hoping that residents contact their Councillors’ with comments on this policy, so that we will walk into that debate with the best possible suggestions.

I have advocated strongly for fiscal restraint and accountability, and have been vocal on Priority Fund Expenditures since I was first elected.

I was concerned enough about the use of public tax payers’ dollars for these expenditures ($30,000 per year per Council member) that I asked Council to consider eliminating the fund and rolling that money back into the general budget in 2007. At that time there were absolutely no controls around distribution of this money other than a request from the Councillor had to come before Council for a vote. Shortly after that, Councillors’ were told that they must have a written request to put before Council.

I wanted to see tightened regulations and so developed a pilot project.  I asked a number of residents to form an advisory committee to create a system for greater accountability. The Building Strong Communities Funding Committee, as they became known, developed formal written applications with required project reports. They evaluated Ward 2 projects and then made recommendations to me. Significant portions of my ward Priority Funds are allocated under this system.

The proposed policy for Priority Funds is an improvement over the current guideline which is basically: 'write a letter of request to your Councillor or the entire Council and expect a stamped approval'. However, there are some areas in the policy that members of the public have voiced concern over.

Right now, informal community groups do get funds for neighbourhood enhancement projects- such as community gardens and perimeter fence painting.

However, the proposed policy states that groups must be registered or have a nonprofit status. This is a significant barrier for grassroots groups to get together and create a project that may be very necessary but not long term. These monies sometimes encourage neighbours to evolve into more established groups – as has happened in both the Cloverbar Neighbourhood Association and the Gilmore Park Community League in the past three years. That to me is the true spirit of the Priority Funds.

The new policy advocates returning all unused funds to the general revenue at the end of each Councillor’s term. This could result in a spending spree at the end of the term and it may also raise issues of vote buying. The March cut off pre-election will help curtail that. But some residents are confused as to why the money would disappear at terms end when it is allocated to the Ward for neighbourhood and project initiatives. “The fund should be designated to the community not the elected official. The Councillors should be care takers of the public trust not nobles dispensing monetary favours (from tax payers dollars)!”

Some organizations are very concerned about the proposed policy guideline of one request per fiscal year which cannot be in the same year as a County grant. This proposed guideline could impact playground applications, and organizations that have previously received Priority Funding.

In general, the proposed policy lists how funds can and cannot be used, but does not address who is going to monitor and ensure accountability. It suggests the expenditures be listed on the Councillors page but a few residents have asked for a link on the County homepage that list ALL priority funding expenditures on one page.  This would also make it very easy to compare expenditures across council. There is more accountability when the public watches.

Do any other municipalities have funds of this magnitude allocated by elected officials? Not that I know of. Indeed I still struggle with the justification of such a fund at all.

Community awareness and comment on Council policies are important. I urge you to contact your elected official with your opinions before April 10– when this comes forward to Council again.

I welcome your views at 780.464.8002; cell 780.267.3137; carr@strathcona.ca; @CouncillorCarr on twitter and www.councillorCarr.com