IN THE NEWS

 
New Condor Fire Hall/Community Services Building
The main outside structure of the new fire hall/community services building at Condor is complete and looking great. The facility can be seen from Highway 11 and is located just south of Condor on the east side of the road. Special kudos to everyone involved in the decision making and construction. It will be exciting to see the finished project.

Broadband Info
The development of improved internet/broadband service for our county residents continues to be a large, difficult issue/decision. There are so many unknowns with the rapidly changing world of technology and our councillors are dedicated to proceeding in the most responsible, efficient manner. They continue to gather vital information and evaluate various possibilities. The fact remains that rural Canadians are all facing the same reduced quality of service. It’s definitely time for the federal and provincial governments to anti-up with more than just talk. Perhaps we all need to promote the cause in the up-coming election!!

TV Star Councillor
 On Friday, August 16th our very own Clearwater County Division 7 Councillor, Michelle Swanson, was a guest on Calgary’s Global TV Morning News. She was promoting the special events coming to Rocky Mtn. House and Clearwater County, most notably the Alberta Masters Games, but she also mentioned the World Professional Chuck Wagon Races going on. Kudos for your excellent, enthusiastic, and well-spoken interview, Michelle. You represented our area very well.

Events to be proud of
It was great to see the two afore-mentioned major events in our area recently. Huge congratulations to all the organizers and volunteers who made these events such a success and put both the town and county “on the map”.

This brings forward a recently rumored issue that the WPCA races may not be coming here next year----definitely a sad situation if that were to become reality. There are hundreds of visitors/pro chuck wagon enthusiasts who have enjoyed coming here these past few years and they have brought with them very positive financial benefits to Rocky for the week-end.

 We do understand the huge financial commitment needed to bring the races here, along with the dedicated efforts of the Board of Directors and volunteers. As well, we recognize the desire/need for the WPCA drivers/organizers to access the most financially beneficial location for their events. As such it is very tough for our area to compete with Century Downs Race Track and Casino on the financial level. We CAN COMPETE, however, on the facility and hospitality level.

 I had the good fortune to attend the WPCA finals at Century Downs and must say our location is much better. There was less available seating (on portable bleachers, with no covered grandstand), very limited parking (so shuttles ran from Cross Iron Mills Mall), and NO RV CAMPING!! We would outshine in each of those areas, especially with our proposed (hopefully soon to be completed) covered grandstand.

While we may not be able to host the WPCA finals, we could continue to host a very successful Battle of the Rockies. I believe it is a worthy benefit to our community to continue discussion with the WPCA so we might continue to enjoy watching and cheering on world class chuckwagon drivers while also providing an economic boost to our area---even if it’s for just a week-end. Let’s keep the Battle going.


 Coming Events
 1. Tuesday, September 17, 2019, 7:30PM, Arbutus Community Hall, Regular monthly meeting

 2. Tuesday, October 15, 2019, 7:30PM, Arbutus Community Hall, Regular monthly meeting.

Letter to the Alberta Energy Regulator

Mrs. Marianne Cole, President,
Clearwater County Taxpayers’ Association
RR #1, Rocky Mtn. House, AB T4T 2A1
June 10, 2019



Mr. Gordon Lambert,
President and CEO Alberta Energy Regulator
Suite 1000, 250 – 5th St. SW
Calgary, AB T2P 0R4


Dear Mr. Lambert:
I am writing this letter on behalf of the Clearwater County Taxpayers’ Association and concerned residents of our area with regards to two issues:

· The operation and control of the Alberta Energy Regulator AND
· Fracking in the oil industry


1. Operation of the Alberta Energy Regulator   We understand the need for a regulatory body to oversee the operation of the oil industry in Alberta but we are very concerned about the make-up of the Board and Directors of the AER. With significant representation from former industry personnel we question if there is adequate, unbiased evaluation of industry operations or is it a matter of “the fox looking after the chicken coop.” We are concerned, that with the weighted membership of oil industry personnel, the interests of rural Albertans may not be adequately considered.

Certainly there is a need for qualified opinion but we also feel that there is a distinct need for representation from rural communities, the people that are potentially seriously affected by oil industry operations in their area and see “the other side of the story.” These people deserve to have input into matters affecting their quality of life and we suggest that there be an open application procedure for representatives on the AER Board with a required, equal number of representatives from various areas of Alberta.


2. Fracking  Again, we understand the benefit of fracking but we are also very concerned about its potentially negative impact from possible earthquakes and the significant use of fresh water. We definitely feel that the AER has to re-evaluate their licensing protocols and procedures as we feel there is not the degree of supervision/control necessary to ensure the well-being of all Albertans. As such we are proposing:

· The development of stringent protocol and procedures for compensation to residents who may have water wells or property damage due to fracking and/or earthquakes. The procedure guidelines must stipulate the responsibilities of the oil industry company involved with a definite
outline of compensation to be paid. The guidelines must be easily understood, readily available, and allow for efficient/sufficient compensation to the affected parties.


· The AER initiate extensive research on the alternatives to the use of fresh water for fracking and then work to enforcing those alternatives. Withdrawing billions of liters of fresh water from our resources for each fracking operation is not sustainable. Recently the Mayor of Calgary expressed concern over the potential inadequate water supply for his city.


Also there needs to be greater supervision by the AER over the approval of temporary diversion licensing. We are very concerned that there is not enough evaluation of the potential impact on the water source before licenses are approved. With the numerous applications that the AER receives on a daily basis we question how extensive an evaluation is done before approval is granted. As mentioned before, the withdrawal of billions and billions of liters of water from our environment is NOT sustainable. There are alternatives to fresh water use for fracking but there IS NOT an alternative to water for sustaining life. We sincerely encourage the AER to do research into, and then subsequently promote/require, alternatives to fresh water use.


In conclusion we reiterate our requests that you address concerns with the operation of the AER as well as the issues related to fracking. We trust that you might be equally concerned about the well-being of all Albertans and our environment, and therefore work towards addressing these concerns.

We look forward to hearing from you.


Yours truly,



Marianne Cole


Cc: Honorable Sonya Savage, Minister of Energy
Mrs. Sheila O’Brien, Chairman of the Board, Alberta Energy Regulator

IN THE NEWS

Potential Zero 0% Tax Increase
 At their regular council meeting on Tuesday, May 14th, Council first of all defeated a motion for a 1% tax hike on municipal taxes. There was significant discussion in light of the fact that, while it is still unknown, there is a potential for a large hike in the education tax, a matter out of Council’s control. Notable comments reported in the May 22nd Mountaineer included Councillor Lougheed’s where he said, “We don’t have control over the province’s numbers but we can cushion the blow.” On a similar note Councillor Laird said, “We have the Tax Stabilization fund. I consider that to be a rainy day fund and I would say this is the rainy day. I support zero per cent at this point after much thought.” Following defeat of the 1% tax hike motion, Councillor Swanson made a motion for a 0% tax increase which passed first reading. We await the results of 2nd and 3rd reading.

Concerns with truck inspections
A phone call was recently received regarding the CPO’s safety inspections on local heavy industry trucks. According to the caller, following word that there would be impending safety checks by the County’s CPO’s, the local operator decided to have his trucks all safety inspected. This was done during break-up when business was slower to ensure that all would be in order and to save future loss of driver/operating time when business ramped up. Subsequently, however, at a meeting with local operators, it was noted by the CPO’s that they would not be honoring other safety inspections but would still do their own. This is a source of frustration for local operators as it means extra time could be lost when their trucks are held up unnecessarily for time consuming inspections when they have proven, valid safety stickers---an additional cost they have already incurred.

Ground breaking activities visible
Ground work for the new Public Works/Fire Hall building at Condor has started and is visible north of Highway 11. It will be exciting to watch the progress as it proceeds.

Friends of the Corridor Schools
The dedicated group of young moms and community members continues to meet and discuss fund raising for the potential new school/improvements at Leslieville and Condor. Plans for a major kick off on June 18th have been postponed until the fall when more definite plans/announcements will, hopefully, be coming from the province. Please check out their website at friendsofthecorridorschools@gmail.com.
 

ROSES
A very special bouquet of roses goes out this month to each one of our councillors for their consideration of the current local economic situation in proposing a 0% municipal tax increase. Your insightful discussion, comments, and decision are, I’m sure, welcomed and appreciated by everyone.

Coming Events: June 11, 2019, 7:30PM Arbutus Community Hall, Regular monthly meeting September 17, 2019, 7:30PM, Arbutus Community Hall, Regular monthly meeting


Coming Events:
 June 11, 2019, 7:30PM Arbutus Community Hall, Regular monthly meeting 
               
 September 17, 2019, 7:30PM, Arbutus Community Hall, Regular monthly meeting

IN THE NEWS

Taxes, taxes, taxes
At their April 23rd council meeting Clearwater County Council discussed the up-coming tax rate bylaw at length. The following are noted highlights of information with quotes from the agenda package:

· “This bylaw is prepared using assessment from the 2018 year.” The assessed value of the property in question is then multiplied by the tax rate that the council sets to give you the amount of municipal taxes you pay.

· The “kicker” this year is the school requisition, a separate tax category that is part of your overall tax bill. Due to the interference of the recent election, the county has experienced “a delay in presenting the prepared tax rate bylaw to Council for the 2019 year, due to the province not delivering a statement of intent for the provincial school requisition for 2019.”

· “Staff has gone ahead and calculated the school requisition estimate based on the 2017 equalized assessment numbers and kept the rate steady from the 2018 requisition.” (Note: The province uses the last 2 years of information to establish their tax requisition.)

· “Clearwater County’s equalized assessment has increased significantly, especially in the non-residential category, and as such there will be an increase in the provincial school requisition.
Even a 0 percent increase in the municipal portion will translate into an increase in the dollars paid by the ratepayer for 2019. Using the estimated numbers, the residential &farm ratepayers are seeing a 5.41% increase in the school requisition rate while the non-residential ratepayers are seeing a 13.8$ increase in their school requisition rate. This equates to $13.83 per $100,000 of residential assessment and $47.72 per $100,000 of non-residential assessment for school requisitions alone.”

· “For the municipal portion of the tax bill, because of a decrease in taxable assessment in Clearwater County, a 0% increase in the municipal tax rate would leave the County in a deficit position of $434, 331. A 1% overall tax rate increase would leave the County in a surplus position of $35, 826.
The question arises---Should an increase in municipal taxes even be considered when the taxpayers will already be facing an “unbargainable” increase in education taxes???

County Surplus
 A list of changes to the accumulated surpluses was presented to council as well. Some of the extra monies resulted from projects that were not completed in 2018 but will be in 2019. Others came as a result of cost savings on projects and some projects being deferred.

 Consequently, as of December 31, 2018, there is an Unrestricted Surplus of $1, 115, 104 and a Total Restricted Surplus of
$95, 284, 283. “Unrestricted” means for unspecified use while “restricted” is designated for specific categories. Notable restricted surplus categories include:

· **** Tax Rate Stabilization---- $12, 000,000. (Taking out the potential $434, 331 deficit to be incurred by a 0% increase in a tax rate for this year would still leave a significant balance in this category.)
· Broadband--- $8,900,000
· Fire (Capital)--- $7, 058,411
· Public works (Capital)--- $6, 502, 995
· Public works (paving, gravel, resource roads combined) $23, 702, 599
· Sewer $8, 821, 055
· Bridge deficit $8, 413, 577

These are just the most notable categories often commented on by county residents. There is still about $20,000,000 in the restricted surplus for numerous other categories.

RANT
With this much money in SURPLUS (the “rainy day fund”), is there any need for an increase in municipal taxes??? It is interesting to note that from December 2017 to December 2018 there was an increase in the total restricted surplus of $13, 603, 918 or 16.66%. How many businesses/taxpayers in Clearwater County saw an increase of 16% in their surpluses (if they even had one) last year???

We’ve been contributing and contributing for years to create these surpluses “in case of tough times”. Now if we take out $434,331 from the tax rate stabilization surplus a balance of $11, 565, 669 will be left. This would allow for other withdrawals of $500,000 for another 23 years. I think we’ll be OK with a O% tax rate increase on municipal taxes this year.

Coming Events:
Tuesday, May 21, 2019, 7:30PM, Arbutus Community Hall, Regular monthly meeting 
Tuesday, June 18, 2019, 7:30PM, Arbutus Community Hall, Regular monthly meeting.