Monday, October 3, 2016

Provincial Budget consultation session in Prince Rupert today

It's Provincial Budget
Consultation Day in
Prince Rupert
Members of the All-Party Select Standing Committee on Finance and Government Services are on the road again this week, the midway point of their one month of consultations to learn where British Columbia communities have their priorities, when it comes to the provincial budget and fiscal initiatives.

The tour which will take the travelling group to fourteen communities across the province makes its only Northwest stop in Prince Rupert today, with the day of consultation taking place at the North Coast Convention Centre on 1st Avenue West part of the Chances complex.

The committee which is chaired by MLA Wm. Scott Hamilton of Delta North includes North Coast MLA Jennifer Rice and MLA Robin Austin from Skeena as part of the ten member group.

The Chair outlined some of the areas that the committee hoped to receive guidance from the public on when it comes to the public sessions.

"Public hearings are a vital component of the committee's work ... we need to hear from British Columbians on how they would prioritize fiscal sustainability, with spending on health, education and social programs, and investments in critical infrastructure, among other priorities"

Some more background on the upcoming sessions can be found here and here.

At the Prince Rupert stop, a number of organizations have registered for participation and will deliver their comments and concerns for the panel.

The North Coast proceedings get under way at 2 PM and continue through until 6 PM tonight.

While the Committee has not provided any kind of list as to who has indicated an interest in appearing, or which groups have registered to contribute to the Prince Rupert session, those that may have heard about the local stop for the tour will no doubt have much to say today.

In previous years when the North Coast has been one of the destinations for the committee, City of Prince Rupert officials, as well as other local officials and community groups, labour representatives and other organizations weighed in to offer counsel to the provincial representatives as to what priorities they have when it comes to how the Provincial government spends money and delivers services.

The 2013 appearance from the City of Prince Rupert featured the City's financial officer, Corinne Bomben providing the view on financial issues for the community, with the City at that time stressing the need for the province to provide Prince Rupert with more abilities to gain revenue to invest in infrastructure concerns.

A theme we imagine that will once again make for part of the Prince Rupert commentary for 2016.


The All-Party Select Standing Committee on Finance and
Government Services is holding a consultation session
at the North Coast Convention Centre today from 2 to 6 PM

Those who can't attend the committee session today, or wish to expand further on their contribution to their work can also submit a written, audio or video presentation to the committee before the deadline of Friday, October 14th.

You can find more information on how to make those submissions here,  while the submission form for your contribution is available here.

More background on the Committee Sessions this month is available here.

Following today's stop in Prince Rupert, the committee moves eastbound with sessions planned for Dawson Creek, Prince George and Quesnel this week, they also will be touring Vancouver Island and the Lower mainland before the consultation period come to an end.

A larger overview of the work of the Committee on Finance and Government Services can be reviewed from the home page for the group hosted on the Legislature Assembly website.

More items related to the work of North Coast MLA Jennifer Rice and other items related to the BC Legislature can be found on our Legislature Archive page.

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