Letters to the editor

Well, there’s a classic propaganda technique! Have a letter published pushing “It’s the Law”: 

Then announce the horrific expense of bylaw disputes.

Followed by a “money and court time saving” announcement.

So I used Google, and found a review from the North Shore municipalities where the project launched. It’s lowered their operating costs, by not having their bylaw officers tied up in court. This saves tax money, which is good!

It also increased their tickets issued by almost 30%, and reduced the dispute rate from 3.2% to 0.2%. The latter part due to public perception that courts are more lenient. This is bad.

The city then realized a 88% ‘conviction’ rate during the dispute process, which “indicates the dispute screening process is very effective and the screening officers' decisions are being upheld by the adjudicators.” Well, of course they are. That’s their job, as both the screening officers and adjudicators are hired by the municipality.

What this program does is reduce the private citizen’s ability to resolve disputes with their respective municipalities, and increases the municipalities revenues as a not so hidden tax. Or, in simpler terms, they’ve found a better way to reach into our pockets, and there isn’t much we can do about it. It was a decision made in a back room, without our say so, as we’ve long abdicated our responsibility to unionized, unelected and entrenched bureaucrats.

Oh, and actual start-up costs? $95,562! The $3,900 quoted in the article above is just a license cost for the program itself.

Bill Grigg