business

B.C. General Election 2005 Survey of Small Business Priorities of Local Candidates for Mayor

Taxation
In most British Columbia municipalities, the property tax rate is higher for business properties than residential properties, even though businesses don’t use more services. In some cases, the business rate is as much as five times more than the residential rate. This is identified as the top tax concern of small and medium-sized business in B.C.

1. Do you consider the property tax gap in your municipality to be a concern? If so, what measures would you take to reduce it if elected? If not, why not?

This is obviously a huge setback for business owners and is not fair at all. Business owners struggling to make ends meet should not have to deal with such a burden. Our city should encourage legal money makers in our city to continue their way of earning a living, not discourage them to the point where they feel compelled to leave our district.

Government Spending
Many voters question why public sector employees receive higher wages and non-wage benefits relative to their private sector counterparts. At the local level, British Columbia’s public workers earn a 13.4 per cent premium over the private sector in wages alone. Over 66 per cent of small businesses support a public sector wage freeze in an effort to reduce public spending and reduce the public-private wage gap.

2. Do you support bringing local government wages back in line with private sector wage levels?
What other measures will you take to ensure that local government spending is controlled?

It seems only fair that public wages are in comparison to private wages, especially since most of the public sector's wage is made of the taxes paid by the private sector.
To support bringing government wages back in line with private sector wages, I will support a wage freeze in an effort to reduce public spending and the wage gap between public and private sectors.

New Federal Money
The federal government is directing new funds to the municipalities in the form of GST rebates and gas tax levies. These moneys are in addition to property taxes and other revenue currently collected by the municipalities. A recent survey of CFIB members in British Columbia showed that two-thirds of members (67 per cent) support restricting “New Deal” federal or provincial funding to municipalities to core infrastructure projects such as roads, sewers, water treatment, and public transit.

3. If elected, what would be your spending priorities for any new federal funds such as GST rebates?

If elected, spending priorities would definitely include road upgrades suitable for emergency evacuation, sewer valves which could safely seal waste in case of flooding, water treatment to ensure the purest water possible, and relatively free public transit.

Regulation
Regulatory compliance can be as costly to business as paying taxes. Businesses want more accountability in this area from all levels of government.

4. Will you commit to measuring the regulatory burden at the local level, reducing the burden by
revoking obsolete regulations, simplifying existing regulations, and forming mutual recognition
agreements for permits and licenses conferred in neighboring municipalities?

Regulations are there to help citizens and businesses to co-exist in an orderly fashion, yet over time things change and they can have the opposite effect. For this reason I will seek to modernize and simplifying illogical regulations, so productivity and efficiency can be maintained at a premium.

Government Customer Service
Voters elect local representation, and taxpayers pay the salaries of both elected officials and civil servants. Yet when they call their local government with questions or concerns, taxpayers are sometimes treated with disrespect, ignored, or given the run around.

5. If elected, would you commit to benchmarking the current standards of customer service in your municipality and working to improve the attitude of your council and staff?

My campaign focuses on enforcing the idea of democracy by listening to what the people have to say. If we are to truly succeed then we must be mature and work together as a community. Disrespect will not be tolerated under my supervision. Everyone will be treated equally and therefor will be entitled to the same level of respect.

Crime
Large and small communities across the province are facing increased challenges as a result of crime. Rising costs including insurance premiums, additional safety measures including alarms and cameras, and replacing damaged property have a significant impact on a small business’s bottom line. Criminal and suspicious behavior in local neighborhoods makes customers reevaluate their shopping decisions, and small businesses reconsider their choice of locale. Empty storefronts and abandoned streets further encourage criminal activity, and the cycle continues.

6. If elected, what will your strategies be to reduce crime in your municipality?

To reduce crime, I feel it is important to address the main causes. Youth are susceptible to misguided influences after being kicked out of school or home, the addicted often steal for goods in exchange for drugs, and others just steal or vandalize out of boredom.
It's important to prevent these causes when ever possible by properly raising our youth, treating the addicted, and supporting skill development and productive pass-times like sports, art or music.

Small Business
Small- and medium-sized businesses are the largest employers in British Columbia, being responsible for over 58 per cent of the jobs in the province. Encouraging small businesses to start up and grow in your municipality provides jobs and helps to build a healthy community.

7. What other measures and policies not mentioned above will you promote to help small- and medium-sized businesses grow?

I will make it a priority to learn the obstacles that growing businesses deal with to I can create a better business climate. Beyond fixing unreasonable taxes and regulatory burden, I will offer tax breaks for new businesses and on products made locally.