Chilliwack – Chilliwack Citizens for Change is encouraging residents to have their say about how the City of Chilliwack will spend their tax money for the next 10 years.
The city is working on a financial plan, which will set the direction for tax spending through 2031. Residents are encouraged to offer feedback now through a survey on the city’s website. For residents who are uncomfortable filling in the survey online, a paper survey was included with tax statements that were mailed out in May.
“It is important for residents to share their personal and community priorities in this crucial stage, before the plan is created, to have the greatest influence on the direction Chilliwack takes in the next 10 years,” said Cody Chance, a CCFC spokesperson.
Here’s how to access the online budget survey, which must be completed before the October 22 deadline: https://chilliwackbudget2022.ethelo.net/page/welcome
Spending categories included in the survey are planning and development, police, fire and other protective services, transportation, parks, recreation and culture. While accessing the survey, residents can see that about 33 per cent of the municipal portion of taxes collected go to fund the RCMP and 10 per cent go to fire protection. More spending goes to other protective services like bylaw enforcement and emergency preparedness. That’s almost half the city budget spent on safety and protection.
“We encourage people to think critically about different ways to spend tax money and different ways to increase funding,” said CCFC spokesperson Meg McCusker.
“In many ways the city’s protective services are reactionary,” McCusker said, “targeting symptoms, rather than causes. Proactively reducing crime through social change reduces officer workload and the need for more officers.”
The survey only takes a few minutes to complete, said Eryne Croquet, also speaking on behalf of CCFC. “Unfortunately, it doesn’t offer space to leave comments for all the questions, so be sure to share your thoughts in greater depth in the final two sections, where there are comment boxes.”
Once the survey is completed, citizens can offer feedback on the survey itself. This section is important, according to CCFC, because it will help the city continue to improve the survey in future years.
CCFC has noted concerns with survey accessibility, design, and function. “For example, we noted that the sliders in the section asking how much the resident would choose to spend on various city services don’t have even increments, making it impossible to select an amount between $250 and $500,” said Croquet. “We think that could be improved.”
Chilliwack Citizens for Change is a progressive group who seek to engage locals in actions leading to positive change for the whole community.
Chilliwack Citizens for Change
chilliwackcitizensforchange@gmail.com
