CFIB congratulates civic candidates who signed Taxpayer Pledge
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List of Candidates Who Have Signed the CFIB Taxpayer Pledge
Vancouver, November 17, 2011 - The Canadian Federation of Independent Business congratulates fifty municipal candidates from communities across British Columbia who took the CFIB Taxpayer Pledge.
Candidates who signed the CFIB Taxpayer Pledge have agreed to:
1) Property Tax Fairness - by committing to reduce the gap between what commercial property and residential property owners pay in each year of their term.
2) Reasonable Spending - by committing to keep operating spending increases reasonable, i.e. at or below the level of population growth and inflation or the rate of growth in disposable income.
3) Openness and Accountability - by supporting in principle, the creation of a Municipal Auditor General for BC, to perform value-for-dollar audits.
"This week's release of BC Municipal Spending Watch, our report into municipal overspending, shows now more than ever, we need municipal leaders who will champion these issues on behalf of all taxpayers," says Shachi Kurl, Director of Provincial Affairs, BC and Yukon.
This year's report shows municipal operating spending in BC has increased nearly four times faster than the rate of population growth over the last decade. In 2009, municipal operating spending cost BC Taxpayers $4.4 billion, up $339 million over the year before.
"Over time, this level of spending isn't sustainable," says Kurl. "The three commitments in the CFIB Taxpayer Pledge are reasonable and achievable. Voters who want to see change believe electing candidates who have taken the CFIB Taxpayer Pledge to local councils is an important step in changing the status quo."
For more information on who has signed the pledge, videos and more, go to our municipal election page and follow the links.
The Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) is a non-profit, non-partisan business association that seeks to give independent business a greater voice in determining the laws that govern business and the country. With 108,000 members across Canada, including 10,000 in British Columbia, we are the largest organization exclusively representing the interests of small and medium-sized independent businesses to all levels of government.
For more information, contact Shachi Kurl during office hours at 604-684-5325 or anytime at shachi.kurl@cfib.ca.
