Delta's mayor says having a new auditor general for local government is a big waste of time and money.
The provincial government tabled legislation last week to create an auditor position.
According to the province, the primary purpose of the Office of the Auditor General for Local Government will be to help local governments find efficiencies in spending and improve program effectiveness by providing neutral, non-binding advice.
The auditor's role will be designed to maximize value for money by undertaking performance audits and providing information to assist local governments in choosing how best to respond to their communities' priorities, according to the province.
Noting municipal governments are prohibited from running a deficit, Mayor Lois Jackson said local governments are the one level where taxpayers get the most "bang for their buck" when it comes to taxation.
"If they're looking at spending and deficits and debt, why don't they have a little look at the province or the feds? We're accountable, we're transparent and we cannot have a deficit budget, so we are totally regulated. We go to public meetings to talk to people about our budget and where it comes from," Jackson said.
"We spend a tremendous amount of time at the council table and with staff to ensure we're getting the very top priorities funded. As far as I'm concerned, bring on the auditor general, it's just going to cost us all money that should be paying the provincial deficit."
Municipal spending was an issue raised during the recent civic election campaign, with Jackson campaigning on Delta's debt being greatly reduced under her watch, as well as the municipality taking a "payas-you-go" approach to new spending.
Delta wasn't painted in a positive light recently in a report by the Canadian Federation of Independent Businesses, which concluded B.C. municipal government spending has ballooned to nearly four times the combined rate of population growth and inflation over a 10-year period.
According to the report, Prince George and Delta were municipalities with wide spending-to-population-growth disparities, as both communities posted negative population growth rates.
Jackson, noting the business group is again taking an overly simplistic view, said the federation doesn't understand the needs of each community, including the infrastructure requirements of Delta, which is the largest geographic municipality in the Lower Mainland.
"We have different needs than, let's say, Port Moody or Lions Bay. Everything is at sea level and needs to be pumped. So they don't understand the complexities of each community.
"I don't like slamming any organization of business, but they tend to certainly take the high road and don't defend anything they're saying," she said.
Delta council earlier this year approved a 2.98 per cent tax increase. Jackson said in the last 10 years Delta has been "in the middle of the pack" when it comes to tax increases.
The move to create the Office of the Auditor General for Local Government was quickly welcomed by the B.C. Chamber of Commerce.
"The legislation of this new office has the potential to fundamentally change the way municipalities in B.C. operate and we applaud the B.C. government for making this bold move to ensure that our municipalities are accountable and provide services in a competitive and cost effective way," said John Winter, president and CEO of the B.C. Chamber of Commerce.
The concept for such an office was developed by the B.C. Chamber of Commerce in a 2010 policy paper.
sgyarmati@delta-optimist.com
