Regional districts are calling on the B.C. government for fair compensation by taxation of BC Hydro properties. The Columbia Shuswap Regional District has put its support behind a resolution from the Regional District of Central Kootenay, calling on the Union of B.C. Municipalities to negotiate with the province an agreement that would see regional districts fairly compensated with grants-in-lieu of property taxes from transmission and distribution lines. "Everybody should pay their fair share of taxes, including BC Hydro, and we've paid a really big price in the CSRD and other parts of the province," commented Golden director Jim Doyle at this month's board meeting. "The generation facilities and these reservoirs have taken up thousands of acres of land." But Doyle and other directors weren't satisfied with just transmission and distribution lines. Revelstoke director Mark McKee suggested compensation should also come for hydro generation stations. South Shuswap Area C director Ted Bacigalupo added transformer stations. Area F director Denis Delisle warned, however, that additions to the resolution might water it down. "The regional directors of British Columbia… have worked on this for quite a few years now, just on transmission lines… I think if we just deal with this issue and bring up that later," said Delisle. Revelstoke-Columbia director Loni Parker reiterated the difficulty the regional districts have had in dealing with BC Hydro on this issue. "They've effectively sidestepped every effort local governments have put in to receive fair compensation," said Parker of the Crown corporation. Doyle and Parker noted how hydro projects have resulted in the loss of forestry jobs as well as 7,000 acres of farm land south of Revelstoke. After voting in support the Kootenay resolution, the board approved an additional resolution that compensation should by paid for all BC Hydro facilities.
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