City of Williams Lake Supports Federal Announcement on Upcoming Bail Reform Measures

Courtesy of the City of Williams Lake:

On October 16, 2025, the Federal Government announced legislation aimed at strengthening Canada’s Criminal Code for crimes committed by violent and repeat offenders as well as a commitment to increase RCMP resources. The media release can be found here: https://www.pm.gc.ca/en/news/news-releases/2025/10/16/prime-minister-carney-announces-new-measures-combat-crime

Despite City of Williams Lake Council’s ongoing call for stronger sentencing and monitoring for prolific, violent and repeat offenders, the judiciary has consistently failed to mitigate the threats to community safety resulting from their release into the community. It is clear that the judicial system is overburdened, due in large part to repeat offenders. Council has continued to request that the courts and judges take into consideration the community appetite to see stricter penalties applied to these types of criminals, and that they not be released when they are at risk to reoffend.

“Williams Lake has been at the forefront for advocating for significant bail reform to help keep repeat, violent and prolific offenders off our streets and restore confidence in our judicial system,” said Acting Mayor Scott Nelson. “While the proposed measures are encouraging, we cannot stress enough that we need strong, focused bail reform. We are thankful that the Prime Minister has taken the initiative to address this crisis, but we need to be clear that our communities need more than baby steps. We need gigantic steps to ensure public safety – the current catch and release of repeat offenders is not acceptable.”

Williams Lake City Councillor calls for bold action to deal with vandalism/public safety in Williams Lake (State of Local Emergency/Curfew)

Editor's Note -- this is my personal opinion and not that of the Cariboo Regional District and its' Board of Directors' 

At its' meeting on Tuesday, May 27th -- Williams Lake City Council will consider a motion from Williams Lake City Councillor Scott Nelson as follows:

That, in collaboration with the Mayor [Williams Lake Mayor Surinderpal Rathor], (Williams Lake City) staff be requested to immediately look at options for calling for a State of Local Emergency in response to the increased threats to public safety; 

And further, that staff investigate options for establishing a curfew from 11 pm to 6 am in collaboration with the RCMP and other local stakeholders, which would include arresting individuals engaged in unlawful activities, as well as escorting unhoused individuals to a shelter or other facility for appropriate support; 

And further, that individuals in the public experiencing intoxication or severe mental issues be transported to the hospital for review of involuntary treatment. 

The report from Councillor Nelson can be viewed here

The Province of BC previously had a "Curfew Act" in the 1990's which would allow the BC Cabinet/Executive Council [Premier + Ministers], upon a petition received from a rural/unincorporated area, to impose restrictions about being out in public during night time hours.  This Act has since been repealed... 

Meanwhile -- use of the "State of Local Emergency" by BC Local Governments' for purposes other than standard local emergencies such as flood/wildfires has previously been disallowed by the BC Ministry of Emergency Management - as was the case in late May of 2024 when former Harrison Hot Springs Mayor Ed Wood unilaterally used it to start a wildfire risk reduction program in Harrison Hot Springs after the 4 Harrison Hot Springs Councillors' of the day had budget and policy concerns and weren't prepared to go along with it, at the time.  More here.  The Province of BC has certain restrictions when it comes to the declaration of a "State of Local Emergency" by a BC Local Government (Municipal Council or Regional District Board).  More on those here

If Williams Lake City Council does agree to Councillor Nelson's motion -- I expect Williams Lake City Staff will obtain legal advice and it will likely indicate that use of a "State of Local Emergency" will not be permitted to deal with things like vandalism in a municipality but I would be interested in hearing what legal advice City of Williams Lake Staff receives about imposing a curfew in Williams Lake during night time hours, especially when Sections 7 + 12 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms - namely "life, liberty and security of the person" and "cruel and unusual treatment of the person"... are factored in, when considering the establishment of a night time curfew 

The Williams Lake City Council meeting of Tuesday, May 27th, 2025 starts at 6:00pm in Williams Lake Council Chambers (450 Mart St, Williams Lake) and also can be viewed live online via YouTube- click here

Williams Lake Council approves 2022 Budget/2022-26 Five Year Financial Plan

Courtesy of the City of Williams Lake:

City of Williams Lake Council approved the 2022-2026 Financial Plan Bylaw at its Regular Meeting Tuesday, April 26 outlining operating expenses, proposed funding sources and anticipated revenues for capital and operational programs over the next five years.

Councillor Scott Nelson, Chair of the Finance Committee, said the plan incorporates a 10 per cent residential tax rate reduction along with a zero per cent water and sewer rate charge for 2022.

“Council and staff recognized the significant jump in property assessments and knew we had to decrease the impact on our taxpayers,” Nelson said. “We saw a large increase in property assessments this year and one of our main goals was to balance that out with the tax rate reduction.”

The City will collect an anticipated $15,786,764 in residential property taxes in 2022, making up the majority of its revenue for the year. Both the total budgeted revenue and expenditures have been balanced.

Also during Tuesday night’s meeting, the City received its annual external auditor’s report based on its 2021 Financial Statements, which noted positive financial growth for the municipality.

Of note, in 2021, the City collected $37 million in revenues. The annual expenditures were $29 million, ending the fiscal year with a surplus of $7.8 million.

At year end, the City had $31.4 million in financial assets and $16.5 million in liabilities with positive net financial assets of $14.9 million. The report also showed the City has reduced its long-term debt by $1 million to $7.4 million, along with an accumulated surplus of $124.5 million, up from $116.5 million the previous year.

Speaking to the auditor’s report, Council noted its commitment to reducing long-term debt and improving the City’s financial health.

“I’m happy with how the City is doing financially and pleased with the auditor’s report,” said Chief Financial Officer Vitali Kozubenko. “We are prepared for the road forward.”