Monday, May 18, 2015

Tax Fatigue In Nanaimo ? Some Councillors Don't Agree

Ipsos Reid Survey Indicates There Is Fatigue

During the last election the level of taxation for the services provided was a topic of discussion and while politicians promising to cut taxes is usually taken with a grain of salt, it was a top of mind topic with many.

This survey, conducted in 2012 has been quoted to indicate a satisfaction among the electorate with the way the city is being run while pretty much ignoring page 18 of the survey which points to the split opinion regards paying increased taxes or seeing a reduction in services.

It will be interesting to see if the Core Services Review process includes a meaningful survey of the Nanaimo taxpayer regards the levels of taxation currently in place and planned for the next five years.

An idea I have put forward in the past is an approach I would like to see the city adopt when it comes to taxation policy. I would like to see a study which concludes how much taxation the citizens of Nanaimo can afford to pay and then base spending accordingly. In our households we know our income and tailor our spending accordingly. In other words there are income limits which control our spending limits. The city however controls it's income limits (by simply raising taxes) to meet it's desired spending. One area of desired spending includes what some would call out-of-control wage and benefits enjoyed by those working for the city, particularly in management roles.

Of course, those are the folk who directly benefit from increased taxes, so expecting them to take tax limits seriously is pretty naive indeed.

allvoices

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