Photo: Castanet

A former Thompson-Nicola Regional District director who ran unsuccessfully to reclaim his seat last fall has been fined $200 as his campaign signage didn't adhere to Elections BC rules.

According to a statement from Elections BC, Steven Rice posted election signs that were missing the required authorization statements.

In a letter sent to Rice on Sept. 26, Elections BC said it had received a complaint about the signs on Sept. 17, 2022, and contacted Rice about the requirement to include the respective statements on the signs.

“I understand that you were already in the process of changing and updating the signs to include the authorization statement after EBC’s Compliance team had contacted you,” the letter said.

Elections BC can issue a penalty of up to $5,000 for the infraction. However, as Rice was already in the process of correcting the signs when he was contacted by Elections BC, he has been given a $200 fine.

Elections BC noted Rice’s campaign has been cooperative with the investigation, and while Rice has previously run as a candidate in previous elections he has never been fined before.

Rice, who was running for another term as director for TNRD’s Electoral Area I, received 123 votes to new director Tricia Thorpe’s 228 votes in the 2022 general local election.