CTF releases list of candidates who signed the "Contract with Taxpayers"

Courtesy of the Canadian Taxpayers' Federation:

With less than two weeks before municipal voting day, the Canadian Taxpayers Federation has announced that 85 candidates for mayor and council have signed the CTF’s Contract with Taxpayers.

“This commitment to taxpayers is unprecedented in its strength and diligence,” said Jordan Bateman, the CTF’s British Columbia director. “These candidates aren’t just talking the talk, they are walking the walk—putting their own salaries on the line to keep property taxes as low as possible.”

The Contract with Taxpayers includes ten points, including keeping tax increases at or below the provincial rate of inflation, encouraging direct democracy, supporting transparency in expenses and a Municipal Auditor General and resisting downloading from senior levels of government.

Candidates signing the Contract have promised to introduce a Taxpayer Protection Bylaw in their community if elected. This bylaw would enshrine the Contract’s principles and enforce a provision for a 15 per cent mayor and council pay cut if property taxes are raised beyond the rate of inflation without explicit public consent. This is similar to what the B.C. premier and cabinet face when the province is in deficit.

“It’s not enough to hear about candidates wanting to keep taxes low at election time. We’ve all seen that song and dance too many times,” said Bateman. “The Taxpayer Protection Bylaw would ensure taxpayers’ rights are put first and foremost in every civic decision. It would shape how spending decisions are made, by ensuring revenue is available before the money goes out the door. This should be part of the DNA of city halls across B.C.”

The full list of signees is below, or available online here. The Contract, along with a backgrounder and draft Taxpayer Protection Bylaw, can be found here.

For more information please contact:

British Columbia Director Jordan Bateman office (604) 510-5535 cell (604) 999-3319 email jbateman@taxpayer.com

BACKGROUNDER

Contract with Taxpayers 2011 Signees

Please note: this is not an endorsement by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, merely a list of the 86 candidates who have signed our Contract with Taxpayers, pledging to bring in a Taxpayer Protection Bylaw if elected.

Listed by community, in alphabetical order:

Abbotsford: Mayoralty candidates Meghann Coughlan and Travis J. Daleman; Council candidates Kevin Chapman, Vince Dimanno
Burnaby: Mayoralty candidate Tom Tao (TEAM Burnaby); Council candidates Jeffrey Chiu (TEAM Burnaby), Jim Favaro (TEAM Burnaby), June Jeffries (TEAM Burnaby), Lee Rankin (TEAM Burnaby)
Central Saanich: Mayoralty candidate Christopher Graham, Council candidate James McNulty
Colwood: Mayoralty candidate Brian Tucknott; Council candidates Teresa Harvey, Duane MacNeill, Rick McKay, Ernest Robertson
Coquitlam: Council candidate Andy Shen
Courtenay: Council candidate John Van Egmond
Creston: Council candidate Ingrid Voigt
Duncan: Council candidate Cassandra Barfield
Fort St. John: Mayoralty candidate Don Irwin
Hope: Council candidates Cindy Koszegi, Walter Rawlinson
Kelowna: Mayoralty candidate Cal Condy; Council candidates Tasha Batt, Doug Cass, Elizabeth Fehr, Mark Thompson
Langley City: Council candidate Darrell Krell
Langley Township: Mayoralty candidate Mel Kositsky; Council candidates Bert Chen, Steve Ferguson, Charlie Fox, Rick Manuel, Sonya Paterson, Carey Poitras, Kim Richter, Dan Sheel, Misty van Popta
Maple Ridge: Council candidates Wendy Cook, Graham Mowatt, Graeme Ross, Grover Telford, Randy Wagner
Mission: Council candidates Roman Bojczuk, Bobby Brar, Lee Hanlon, Arnold Muir
Nanaimo: Council candidate Brunie Brunie
New Westminster: Council candidates John Ashdown (VOICE), Gavin Palmer (VOICE)
Port Coquitlam: Mayoralty candidate William Issa
Port Moody: Council candidates Tom Bell, Shane Kennedy
Prince George: Mayoralty candidate Bruce Fader; Council candidate Brad Gagnon
Revelstoke: Council candidate Linda Nixon
Richmond: Council candidates Peter Mitchell, Cliff Lifeng Wei, Michael Wolfe (RITE), Jun L. Wuyan
Saanich: Council candidate Ingrid Ip
Sooke: Council candidates Herb Haldane, Shaunna Salsman
Squamish: Council candidate Douglas Neville
Surrey: Mayoralty candidates Vikram J.S. Bajwa, Ross Buchanan; Council candidate Paul Griffin
Thompson Nicola Regional District: Director candidate Sally Watson
Vancouver: Council candidates George Affleck (NPA), Sean Bickerton (NPA), Ken Charko (NPA), Cord “Ted” Copeland, Rick Orser, Bill Yuen (NPA)
Vernon: Council candidates Scott Anderson, Bob Spiers
View Royal: Council candidate Ron Mattson
West Kelowna: Council candidate Gordon Ficke
West Vancouver District: Council candidate Gregg Henderson
Whistler: Council candidate Steve Anderson
White Rock: Mayoralty candidate Larry Anschell; Council candidates Brad Forster, Bruce McWilliam
Williams Lake: Mayoralty candidate Walt Cobb, Council candidate Steve Forseth