Every year at budget time, it’s the same story.
Cowichan Valley Regional District directors and Municipality of North Cowichan councillors are all generally apologetic to property owners for tax increases and vow to do better next year.
This year’s 11.49 per cent average tax increase for the CVRD is so far beyond reasonable it defies description.
Some directors acknowledged there’s not a lot of changes that were promised to the electorate, but went ahead and supported the budget anyway.
Residents have heard all this far too often from the CVRD and North Cowichan. There’s this commitment and that commitment which must be met, meaning an increase is guaranteed virtually right off the top no matter what efforts are made at budget savings.
This is not the Kingdom of Brunei with unlimited wealth. With an aging population and so many residents having limited resources, these types of increases cannot continually be met.
Many are already facing hardships from the economy with record-breaking inflation. The way costs are skyrocketing, it’s literally going to break the bank soon for even the most diligent budget-conscious individuals.
The biggest problem directors and councillors have to realize is our small-town businesses that are the core of our communities cannot – and should not have to – absorb such hard hits to their finances.
The ability to make a profit during the post-COVID restriction time is almost nil and this isn’t going to help the bottom line for those scratching to stay afloat.
A major issue within the regional district and municipality, of course, is wages. Employees are extremely well-paid compared to the average resident and guarantees for pay raises in their contracts means the great divide will continue.
If anything ever happens with the Crofton Catalyst Paper Excellence pulp mill, the major tax contributor in the valley, it will mean big trouble for the local economy.
It might be wise for the CVRD and North Cowichan to take a harder stance against expenses now rather than just continuing to spend freely and assuming we may never face dire straits one day.
