Islands Trust Council regular meeting, February 15, 2023

[0:00:00] Voice 17: We're now live streaming and broadcasting.

[0:00:03] Voice 17: You're ready to start your meeting.

[0:00:05] Trustee Bernardo: Thank you.

[0:00:07] Trustee Bernardo: We have quorum.

[0:00:09] Trustee Bernardo: So I'm now calling this resumption of the meeting we've had yesterday, I'm calling it to order.

[0:00:16] Trustee Bernardo: First item I'd like to address is that yesterday I did not open the meeting properly.

[0:00:23] Trustee Bernardo: And that's something I would like to correct today.

[0:00:25] Trustee Bernardo: before we resume our discussions i wish to acknowledge that we are privileged to live and

[0:00:33] Trustee Bernardo: work in lands and waters that have been the traditional home of indigenous peoples since

[0:00:38] Trustee Bernardo: time immemorial their counsel to newcomers has always been above all to recognize the sacredness

[0:00:45] Trustee Bernardo: of these lands and waters and the dignity and worth of all of its children that's the duty

[0:00:53] Trustee Bernardo: with which each of us has been entrusted to fulfill that duty with honor and wisdom we must

[0:00:59] Trustee Bernardo: do more than deal and words we must and will work side by side with the first nations who were and

[0:01:06] Trustee Bernardo: continue to be the first stewards of what many of us now call the islands trust area i was remiss in

[0:01:15] Trustee Bernardo: another matter uh yesterday ceo russ uh you have a difficult job i didn't make it any easier for you

[0:01:25] Trustee Bernardo: you yesterday my frustrations with this process uh have uh been obvious i think probably for a

[0:01:34] Trustee Bernardo: while but uh yesterday they got the better of me and at the end of the day i responded

[0:01:41] Trustee Bernardo: um in a way that was intemperate that's that's an explanation it's not an excuse you didn't

[0:01:47] Trustee Bernardo: invent this process it wasn't fair of me to act as if you are and uh i ended up barking at you

[0:01:56] Trustee Bernardo: that was wrong and uh for that uh i hope uh you will accept my apology certainly thank you i

[0:02:05] Trustee Bernardo: appreciate that um uh and i'm sincere in saying that uh it's not just a gesture i mean it thank

[0:02:12] Voice 12: you now

[0:02:13] Trustee Bernardo: before we get underway uh staff uh uh suggested this morning uh that we set an end time

[0:02:20] Trustee Bernardo: for the balance of this meeting uh that makes a lot of sense to me i propose that um we aim to

[0:02:28] Trustee Bernardo: to conclude our business by 2.30 today,

[0:02:30] Trustee Bernardo: at least make that our target.

[0:02:33] Trustee Bernardo: And I'd like to canvass, if there's any objections to that,

[0:02:37] Trustee Bernardo: somebody speak up, otherwise I'll take

[0:02:39] Trustee Bernardo: that we have general consent to do that.

[0:02:44] Voice 6: I'm in favor of that, Chair, and I'll just note

[0:02:46] Voice 6: that I must leave by 2.30 today, so.

[0:02:51] Trustee Bernardo: Well, that's what we're going to try to do.

[0:02:54] Trustee Bernardo: Now, thank you for that.

[0:02:56] Trustee Bernardo: It appears that that's going to be our deadline

[0:02:58] Trustee Bernardo: for today, 2.30.

[0:02:59] Trustee Bernardo: Now, finally, yesterday, I indicated that, yes?

[0:03:03] Voice 15: Sorry to interrupt.

[0:03:04] Trustee Bernardo: I

[0:03:05] Voice 15: do just want to remind the committee that we have more items on the agenda than simply

[0:03:10] Voice 15: wrapping up the budget discussion.

[0:03:12] Voice 15: Some of those items are going to be new items for this committee to see, such as the property

[0:03:17] Voice 15: tax insert.

[0:03:18] Voice 15: So I could foresee us potentially needing more than an hour and a half.

[0:03:24] Trustee Bernardo: Well, thank you for that.

[0:03:27] Trustee Bernardo: You might well be right.

[0:03:28] Trustee Bernardo: um but uh let's see if we can try to discipline ourselves and move on through this um as i said

[0:03:39] Trustee Bernardo: yesterday um we might i had suggested that we might want to deal with the balance of the agenda

[0:03:45] Trustee Bernardo: before we return to the crucial business of landing on a budget that we can present to trust

[0:03:50] Trustee Bernardo: council i'll be honest more than anything else that was motivated by exhaustion uh you know i

[0:03:57] Trustee Bernardo: I wanted to take a break from the heavy lifting to actually get something else done.

[0:04:01] Trustee Bernardo: But I've reflected on that, and I'm not sure it's necessary.

[0:04:05] Trustee Bernardo: The fact is that yesterday, we exhaustively aired out different views.

[0:04:12] Trustee Bernardo: I think the time for that's done.

[0:04:14] Trustee Bernardo: I mean, we're just going to end up repeating ourselves if we start renewing that business.

[0:04:21] Trustee Bernardo: We did a lot of work to find some ideas where to find cuts.

[0:04:25] Trustee Bernardo: and it's clear that it's a limited appetite to keep looking for more people have expressed their

[0:04:31] Trustee Bernardo: positions not just with respect to specific line items but generally the if you can call it the

[0:04:39] Trustee Bernardo: philosophy with which we like to approach this and i think we've landed at this spot where there's a

[0:04:46] Trustee Bernardo: general recognition that there's going to have to be some kind of tax increase the question is how

[0:04:50] Trustee Bernardo: much and that's what those um items that we identified yesterday were all about so subject to

[0:04:57] Trustee Bernardo: uh anybody objecting i propose that we simply proceed to the list that was compiled yesterday

[0:05:04] Trustee Bernardo: and the way we would work through it would be by way of having um an up and down vote by just

[0:05:10] Trustee Bernardo: the show hands for each item and then after we've figured out what has support for a cut

[0:05:17] Trustee Bernardo: and what doesn't we can proceed by a single resolution to ask staff to incorporate those

[0:05:22] Trustee Bernardo: cuts if any for which we know that there's a majority approval does that

[0:05:29] Voice 9: approach uh does

[0:05:31] Voice 9: anybody object to taking that approach well that's um that's very encouraging thank you

[0:05:41] Trustee Bernardo: we don't seem to have uh any objection to it so let's get to it um could

[0:05:45] Voice 1: we zoom in on the on the

[0:05:47] Voice 1: the screen that's shared please it's it's a little small thank you great

[0:05:51] Trustee Bernardo: I was just about to say that

[0:05:53] Trustee Bernardo: okay now staff it's uh I'm not going to be able to keep track of what gets approved and what doesn't

[0:06:00] Trustee Bernardo: but uh let's uh take item number one uh there's a proposal that we cut the co-op position uh for

[0:06:09] Trustee Bernardo: planning services uh may I have a show of hands for

[0:06:13] Voice 9: those who support doing that none okay

[0:06:23] Voice 9: Okay, number two, there's a proposal that we-

[0:06:28] Trustee Bernardo: Mr. Chair?

[0:06:28] Trustee Bernardo: Yes.

[0:06:30] Voice 15: We have trustees who are raising their electronic accounts.

[0:06:33] Trustee Bernardo: Yes.

[0:06:36] Trustee Bernardo: Sorry, hang on.

[0:06:37] Trustee Bernardo: What am I missing something here?

[0:06:40] Trustee Bernardo: We have four-

[0:06:41] Trustee Bernardo: Sorry, I was missing.

[0:06:43] Trustee Bernardo: I was confused.

[0:06:45] Trustee Bernardo: Bear with me, please.

[0:06:46] Trustee Bernardo: All right, that's all right.

[0:06:50] Trustee Bernardo: Can we have staff enumerate those, please?

[0:06:53] Voice 3: yeah we have five on the screen indicating in favor all right thank you i'm only seeing

[0:07:01] Voice 3: who

[0:07:01] Voice 10: is the fifth one uh

[0:07:05] Voice 3: it was a trustee bernardo it was the first one i'm

[0:07:10] Voice 10: going with the four

[0:07:10] Voice 10: there's four uh

[0:07:11] Voice 3: okay trustee maude evans patrick banana born i see so trustee

[0:07:18] Voice 9: maude is not on the

[0:07:19] Voice 9: screen is that correct yeah

[0:07:26] Voice 3: i don't know i'm looking at the participants list uh not the um

[0:07:30] Voice 3: not the pictures of people fair

[0:07:32] Voice 9: enough all right if we could all lower our hands please and

[0:07:38] Voice 9: uh move on to the next item uh

[0:07:42] Trustee Bernardo: the next item is the freshwater strategy co-op student position

[0:07:47] Trustee Bernardo: uh could i have a show of hands for anybody who uh for the idea

[0:07:51] Voice 9: of cutting that position so i see

[0:08:01] Voice 3: I see three, and I see that Director Mobs has a hand up, maybe for another reason.

[0:08:06] Voice 3: Yes, I've noticed that.

[0:08:08] Trustee Bernardo: I'm going to address that in a moment.

[0:08:10] Trustee Bernardo: It appears that that one falls, that one fails.

[0:08:16] Trustee Bernardo: Director Mobs, you had something you wanted to address?

[0:08:22] Voice 15: Yeah, so I missed the result of the first vote.

[0:08:26] Voice 15: What's typically standard is we'd have a motion put on the floor and then a vote taken place

[0:08:30] Voice 15: so we can have records um of

[0:08:33] Trustee Bernardo: those things as i indicated before my intention is to simply

[0:08:37] Trustee Bernardo: enumerate which one of these items um for cuts reach majority approval and then just have an

[0:08:44] Trustee Bernardo: omnibus resolution to take care of all of them at once instead of having like three four how

[0:08:49] Trustee Bernardo: many resolutions uh it just seems more okay i

[0:08:52] Voice 15: missed that my apologies oh

[0:08:54] Trustee Bernardo: it's okay all right

[0:08:55] Trustee Bernardo: Right. Next, Secretariat Services, may I have a show of hands with respect to whether or not that is an acceptable cut to the majority or not?

[0:09:12] Voice 9: So I'm seeing three in favour.

[0:09:15] Voice 9: Okay. Whoops. Hands

[0:09:21] Trustee Bernardo: down, please. Okay. Next one, the History Heritage Grants and Aid, $10,000. Show of hands, please, to see whether or not we

[0:09:31] Voice 9: approve a cut from that reduction or not.

[0:09:37] Voice 9: And I see six in favour.

[0:09:39] Voice 9: all right thank you please lower hands uh the next item uh

[0:09:49] Trustee Bernardo: was uh the policy statement uh funding

[0:09:52] Trustee Bernardo: on the theory that that cut would then be redirected into surplus and then the circle

[0:09:59] Trustee Bernardo: that portion of the surplus reallocated to uh appropriate line items to reduce the tax

[0:10:05] Trustee Bernardo: burden so i could have a show of hands for those in

[0:10:08] Voice 9: favor of uh making that cut there are three in

[0:10:18] Voice 9: favor okay lower hands please oops i guess i should do that too there okay

[0:10:28] Trustee Bernardo: uh we had a proposal

[0:10:31] Trustee Bernardo: to remove funding for one of the in-person meetings uh could i have a show of hands for

[0:10:37] Trustee Bernardo: those who favor

[0:10:38] Voice 9: doing that there are six in favor all right uh please lower hands uh that uh the

[0:11:01] Trustee Bernardo: next item is to uh well that one's a bit difficult i'm not quite sure i understand what we're

[0:11:07] Trustee Bernardo: supposed to be doing that which is reduce ltc projects by some amount i think we were thinking

[0:11:13] Trustee Bernardo: about some percentage and we never did settle on it uh and we also didn't settle uh on looking at

[0:11:25] Trustee Bernardo: it on a kind of the my theory i was articulating yesterday about the problem of the five-year

[0:11:31] Trustee Bernardo: average underspend um i'm just wondering uh before we well there's nothing to vote there on

[0:11:43] Trustee Bernardo: so i think i need to canvas whether there's any interest by the group of wanting to further

[0:11:50] Trustee Bernardo: explore that or not so if there's any interest to attempt to sort of gnaw away at that to come

[0:11:56] Trustee Bernardo: up with a percentage could i have a show of hands see if there's any support for that to

[0:12:01] Trustee Bernardo: to

[0:12:01] Voice 9: gnaw away at that and I see three in sorry yeah three in favor four in favor all right uh

[0:12:17] Voice 9: and what about uh the same show of hands with respect to the reducing the strategic plan by

[0:12:24] Voice 9: someone else and four in favor oh five in favor

[0:12:35] Voice 3: uh that went to five so

[0:12:39] Trustee Bernardo: that passes is that right

[0:12:40] Voice 3: um if I may uh chair Bernardo there's 10 10 members of the committee here in attendance

[0:12:47] Voice 3: and so that five would be a tie vote and tie votes would fail so you require six to um for

[0:12:54] Voice 3: something to pass okay

[0:12:57] Trustee Bernardo: in that case it's failed um which for half of the people in committee is

[0:13:05] Trustee Bernardo: unfortunate but on the other hand for all of us it's uh at least saves us the um the exercise of

[0:13:11] Trustee Bernardo: of having to figure out what that number would have been so we're relieved of that agony so next

[0:13:16] Trustee Bernardo: item last one an additional draw from the surplus um basically uh we're looking at pulling out a

[0:13:27] Trustee Bernardo: hundred thousand dollars do

[0:13:28] Voice 9: we have a vote in favor of that and i see

[0:13:35] Voice 3: six in favor okay for

[0:13:37] Voice 3: me lower hands okay

[0:13:39] Trustee Bernardo: um as i indicated before it seems to me then we can now move on to the next

[0:13:44] Trustee Bernardo: stage which is um i wish i'd come up with language for this but i haven't

[0:13:50] Trustee Bernardo: uh i'm just i'm thinking that we need language for an omnibus um uh resolution somewhere to the

[0:14:02] Trustee Bernardo: effect of the financial planning committee uh make you know the following additional

[0:14:09] Trustee Bernardo: additional deletions or cuts to the budget and then itemize them uh could I ask staff to prepare

[0:14:17] Trustee Bernardo: that draft resolution somebody can look we can look at it later and then fit somebody might wish

[0:14:23] Trustee Bernardo: to make a motion at that juncture but pending that we could move on to other other items on

[0:14:28] Trustee Bernardo: the agenda I think yeah

[0:14:31] Voice 3: if I may chair it's uh David here yeah yeah I just recommend the wording

[0:14:36] Voice 3: coming up on the screen here the financial planning committee I would actually suggest

[0:14:41] Voice 3: amends or amend the draft 2023-24 budget that is being recommended to trust council

[0:14:51] Voice 3: by and then a colon and then you can list what you're going to do well

[0:14:59] Trustee Bernardo: that would be the list

[0:15:00] Trustee Bernardo: is there it's the things that we've um that reached a majority vote on our straw polls

[0:15:06] Voice 3: correct you would just insert those into the resolution so somebody should move that i can

[0:15:13] Voice 3: put that in for you right now all

[0:15:17] Voice 9: right uh do we have a mover for this or shall i move it

[0:15:24] Voice 9: i'd be happy to move that for you chair thank you uh

[0:15:28] Voice 10: um i will however ask for the screen to

[0:15:31] Voice 10: be scrolled down at the right moment but the i moved that the financial planning committee amend

[0:15:35] Voice 10: amend the draft 2023-24 budget

[0:15:40] Voice 10: that is being recommended to council

[0:15:42] Voice 10: by removing the following items,

[0:15:44] Voice 10: $27,500 for one meeting, in-person meeting.

[0:15:51] Voice 10: Two.

[0:15:53] Trustee Bernardo: I think we have to go up, scroll up to the list

[0:15:56] Trustee Bernardo: so that to give the trustee luck of an opportunity

[0:15:59] Trustee Bernardo: to read the items that were approved.

[0:16:03] Trustee Bernardo: Two was the

[0:16:03] Voice 10: history heritage grants in aid

[0:16:06] Voice 10: and three was the additional draw from surplus

[0:16:10] Voice 10: of a maximum of $100,000.

[0:16:41] Voice 9: So if

[0:16:42] Voice 3: I may, just for correctness,

[0:16:43] Voice 3: the first two items are removing.

[0:16:46] Voice 3: So maybe Robert, those two can be a bullet

[0:16:50] Voice 3: and then just say, and by drawing an additional

[0:16:54] Voice 3: 100,000 from the surplus or something like that.

[0:16:57] Voice 10: Thank you very much, David.

[0:16:58] Voice 10: David.

[0:17:01] Trustee Bernardo: Mr. Marlowe, does that resolution as drafted,

[0:17:06] Trustee Bernardo: is that sufficient to, I mean,

[0:17:09] Trustee Bernardo: it's effective in identifying those deletions,

[0:17:14] Trustee Bernardo: but is there also effective in recognizing

[0:17:18] Trustee Bernardo: that this is the budget that this committee

[0:17:21] Trustee Bernardo: is now recommending to trust council?

[0:17:25] Voice 3: Yeah, I believe so.

[0:17:26] Voice 3: I just ask Director Mobs if she's got any additional things

[0:17:30] Voice 3: that she requires.

[0:17:31] Voice 3: going to cancel i

[0:17:33] Voice 15: do um so these this resolution uh would give direction to staff to amend the

[0:17:41] Voice 15: budget we would still require resolution uh instructing staff to forward the budget materials

[0:17:47] Voice 15: to trust council as amended um given there's been changes made and then uh in addition to

[0:17:54] Voice 15: those items this resolution actually requires some further detail in that extra hundred thousand

[0:17:58] Voice 15: dollar draw from surplus needs to be allocated to specific areas of spending i would recommend

[0:18:05] Voice 15: two resolutions in this instance i would recommend a resolution to remove the two items from the

[0:18:10] Voice 15: budget that's an easy standalone and then i would have a second resolution to uh have an additional

[0:18:15] Voice 15: draw from surplus and allocate the draw to certain expenses but that's the will of the committee if

[0:18:22] Voice 15: they wish to split that up uh

[0:18:23] Trustee Bernardo: but if you have the two resolutions how do we get in the point that

[0:18:28] Trustee Bernardo: that you made that we need to have it,

[0:18:29] Trustee Bernardo: you believe that we should have an explicit resolution

[0:18:35] Trustee Bernardo: approving the budget for referral to trust counsel.

[0:18:38] Voice 4: Sorry, can I interrupt?

[0:18:39] Voice 4: I hate to do this,

[0:18:40] Voice 4: but I'd like to make a point of privilege.

[0:18:42] Voice 4: I've been having a hard time with my lowering

[0:18:45] Voice 4: and raising of my hand, especially during the count.

[0:18:48] Voice 4: I was wondering if we could revisit a couple of the items

[0:18:51] Voice 4: before finalizing this.

[0:18:54] Trustee Bernardo: I

[0:18:54] Voice 4: couldn't see that my hand was actually being raised.

[0:18:57] Trustee Bernardo: Okay, by all means. Can we return please to the list? Which are the items that you would like to revisit?

[0:19:07] Voice 4: If we could revisit, I think we don't need to revisit one and eight.

[0:19:13] Trustee Bernardo: All right, let's redo our straw poll with respect to number one.

[0:19:19] Trustee Bernardo: Are those in favour of making that cut, please raise your hands.

[0:19:26] Voice 3: I'm going to read out the trustees if that's okay.

[0:19:29] Voice 3: Okay, so I see Evans, Patrick, Maude, Boland, Bernardo, so it's five.

[0:19:35] Voice 9: Okay, and if we could repeat the exercise, please, with respect to number eight.

[0:19:56] Voice 9: Okay, I'm

[0:19:57] Voice 3: seeing Boland, Evans, Patrick, and Elliot, and that's four.

[0:20:02] Voice 3: Oh, did I not have my hand up? Sorry.

[0:20:04] Voice 3: No, you didn't, so you'll be the fifth. Okay, so now it's five with Bernardo.

[0:20:08] Trustee Bernardo: Fine, thank you. So nothing changes, but at least we have clarity there, which is good.

[0:20:16] Trustee Bernardo: So returning to the draft resolution here, back to that question about needing to have a kind of an explicit referral to Trust Council.

[0:20:33] Voice 9: Maybe we could actually do this by one

[0:20:35] Trustee Bernardo: resolution, although this is Trustee Luckham's motion.

[0:20:40] Voice 10: So might I suggest actually the staff advice is good and haven't been here before.

[0:20:45] Voice 10: it's at some in some occasions it's better to have discrete items because not everybody

[0:20:51] Voice 10: necessarily wants to vote for all all of them and so I would suggest as recommended by staff

[0:20:56] Voice 10: to do the first two items as removing from the thing the second one being the motion to do the

[0:21:03] Voice 10: surplus piece and would appreciate the opportunity from staff to advise us what areas that surplus

[0:21:09] Voice 10: should be applied to because that's not necessarily uh straightforward uh and then indeed at the end

[0:21:16] Voice 10: of this process when we've decided this is it that a final motion be simply that the budget

[0:21:21] Voice 10: be forwarded to trust council as amended and that's sort of clean and how we typically have

[0:21:26] Voice 10: done it in the past all

[0:21:28] Trustee Bernardo: right well that uh that sounds like a workable solution so let's do it

[0:21:31] Trustee Bernardo: that way um uh the uh the nuts and bolts of drafting the language i you know uh it's not

[0:21:41] Trustee Bernardo: an efficient use of our time as trustees to mess with that we've got the general thing laid out uh

[0:21:46] Trustee Bernardo: the direction and we could leave it staff perhaps to sort of work away on that language while we

[0:21:51] Trustee Bernardo: try to get to other things but before we do that um we have to attend to uh director mob's point

[0:21:59] Trustee Bernardo: that we need to provide some kind of direction

[0:22:03] Trustee Bernardo: with respect to what happens to that surplus,

[0:22:07] Trustee Bernardo: the $100,000 we withdraw from the surplus.

[0:22:11] Trustee Bernardo: Now, my recollection is the tenor of the discussion yesterday

[0:22:14] Trustee Bernardo: was that it should be redirected.

[0:22:17] Trustee Bernardo: The surplus money should be redirected

[0:22:20] Trustee Bernardo: to act as a substitute for tax monies

[0:22:23] Trustee Bernardo: that otherwise go to service,

[0:22:25] Trustee Bernardo: as, I believe, LTC projects or some other projects along those lines. Now, that's my recollection,

[0:22:33] Trustee Bernardo: but I see Trustee Patrick has her hand up.

[0:22:36] Trustee Patrick: Yes, I thought that sort of solved some of the issue

[0:22:40] Trustee Patrick: that we were discussing about the potential of overestimating the local trust committee projects

[0:22:45] Trustee Patrick: by drawing from surplus that lease removes that we're not taxing on an overestimation.

[0:22:50] Trustee Patrick: So I would support that we direct the funds to the local trust committee projects.

[0:22:56] Trustee Bernardo: well that's that's my recollection of the tenor of the discussion yesterday anyhow does anybody

[0:23:00] Trustee Bernardo: object to proceeding along those lines of putting that into the language there

[0:23:06] Trustee Bernardo: uh is staff comfortable with fashioning language to make that happen while we move on to other

[0:23:11] Trustee Bernardo: things i

[0:23:14] Voice 10: believe the staff have already crafted the first motion already it's on the screen and

[0:23:19] Voice 10: the second one is about to be completed okay i've

[0:23:27] Voice 9: put it in the chat uh okay i see right

[0:23:36] Voice 9: Right. And in

[0:23:52] Voice 10: the interest of time, not meaning to interrupt Mr. Chair, but you could call the

[0:23:56] Voice 10: seconder on the first resolution and we could vote on that.

[0:23:59] Trustee Bernardo: Does that work for staff? Because I see,

[0:24:01] Trustee Bernardo: you know, you're cobbling away here. Can we proceed with our resolution without interfering

[0:24:06] Trustee Bernardo: with what you're

[0:24:06] Voice 9: doing right now? I'll speak for Robert. Yes, go ahead.

[0:24:14] Trustee Bernardo: Yes, that's fine.

[0:24:15] Trustee Bernardo: Thank you. I see, I see Trustee Bullen has her hand up.

[0:24:18] Voice 1: I'll second that motion if Peter has

[0:24:21] Voice 1: has already moved it.

[0:24:23] Trustee Bernardo: Yeah, well, Peter's moved the first one.

[0:24:25] Trustee Bernardo: You've seconded, I'm not gonna,

[0:24:31] Trustee Bernardo: is, if there's any appetite for further discussion

[0:24:34] Trustee Bernardo: on that item, please raise your hands.

[0:24:37] Trustee Bernardo: Otherwise, I'm gonna call a vote.

[0:24:41] Trustee Bernardo: I'm now calling a vote on that resolution.

[0:24:44] Trustee Bernardo: Please, by

[0:24:45] Voice 9: raising your hands, indicate approval.

[0:24:52] Voice 9: Has

[0:24:53] Trustee Bernardo: staff enumerated that count?

[0:24:54] Voice 3: Yeah, I see nine in favor.

[0:24:56] Voice 3: okay okay

[0:24:58] Trustee Bernardo: was

[0:24:59] Voice 15: this a vote on our first resolution yes

[0:25:02] Voice 9: correct thank

[0:25:03] Voice 15: you so

[0:25:05] Voice 9: that would complete

[0:25:10] Voice 9: trustee boland do you have your hand up or oh

[0:25:14] Trustee Bernardo: i see uh thank you all right um

[0:25:18] Trustee Bernardo: may i have a motion for in a second or for the second item

[0:25:22] Voice 9: the second motion resolution

[0:25:30] Voice 9: somebody has to move the first one uh trustee graham

[0:25:33] Voice 5: happy to move that chair thank you um

[0:25:36] Voice 5: I move that the Financial Planning Committee include an additional draw from the General Revenue Surplus Fund of $100,000 in the draft 2023-2024 budget that is being recommended to Trust Council and that the funds be allocated to local Trust Committee projects.

[0:26:00] Voice 19: I'll second that.

[0:26:02] Voice 5: Thank you, Trustees.

[0:26:03] Voice 5: uh

[0:26:04] Trustee Bernardo: may uh i am now gonna put this uh unless there's unless somebody can indicate they're

[0:26:13] Trustee Bernardo: indicated in further sorry i'm stumbling on my words here unless somebody indicates by a show

[0:26:18] Trustee Bernardo: of hands that they wish to engage in further debate on this item i will call a vote so if

[0:26:24] Trustee Bernardo: you want to talk about it please show your hands now

[0:26:26] Voice 9: okay

[0:26:29] Trustee Bernardo: i'm not

[0:26:30] Voice 9: calling a vote uh please indicate

[0:26:32] Voice 9: your approval by raising your hands.

[0:26:39] Voice 9: That one

[0:26:40] Voice 3: is 10 trustees in favor.

[0:26:42] Voice 3: So that one carries.

[0:26:43] Voice 9: Thank you, please lower your hands.

[0:26:51] Voice 9: And finally, we have the third motion

[0:26:57] Voice 9: which triggers this whole thing.

[0:26:59] Trustee Bernardo: I see Director Mobs has her hand up.

[0:27:04] Voice 15: Thanks chair.

[0:27:06] Voice 15: What is preferable is to have the committee look

[0:27:08] Voice 15: at the entire budget package that's going to trust council

[0:27:11] Voice 15: which includes some additional items over

[0:27:12] Voice 15: and above the budget numbers

[0:27:14] Voice 15: such as the budget session outline for example and then to

[0:27:17] Voice 15: have all of the budget materials

[0:27:18] Voice 15: forwarded at one time so if we hold off on this one uh take a look at item 7.4 on the agenda

[0:27:25] Voice 15: then we can get this one moving uh

[0:27:29] Trustee Bernardo: some okay uh i understand your point that there are other items

[0:27:33] Trustee Bernardo: we need to specifically direct our attention to that form the package that goes to trust council

[0:27:38] Trustee Bernardo: so um you mentioned 7.4 um or

[0:27:43] Voice 15: apology 7.5 that's right all

[0:27:46] Trustee Bernardo: right uh could you actually um i mean

[0:27:49] Trustee Bernardo: we've we've kind of beaten this thing to death but um in terms of the hard part of it but if you

[0:27:56] Trustee Bernardo: could perhaps assist us by directing our attention to specific things that we need to consider uh

[0:28:02] Trustee Bernardo: that would be much appreciated.

[0:28:05] Voice 15: Absolutely. The first item to look at would be 751,

[0:28:10] Voice 15: which is the budget session outline. So that's on page 36 of the agenda package.

[0:28:15] Voice 15: This is simply providing an outline of what the budget session at Trust Council will look like.

[0:28:20] Voice 15: So we bring it to the committee to make sure that you feel this budget session is outlined as you

[0:28:27] Voice 15: would like it to see at Trust Council. Executive Committee does set the agendas for Trust Council.

[0:28:31] Voice 15: So if what you see here you think needs to be amended, you would be making a request to the Executive Committee to amend the Trust Council Agenda Package for changes that you would like to see.

[0:28:43] Voice 15: We do have three hours allocated on the Trust Council Agenda for the budget discussion and debate.

[0:28:49] Voice 15: Usually we have a few minutes for the Chair to talk about the budget, the CAO as well, if you'd wish, and then I go through the budget materials, and then of course it's time for debate.

[0:28:59] Voice 15: So happy

[0:28:59] Voice 15: to take direction or questions on this.

[0:29:01] Voice 15: uh

[0:29:02] Trustee Bernardo: i i do actually have a comment about that uh which is uh for the benefit of trust council i

[0:29:10] Trustee Bernardo: think it's important that um in the introduction the the challenge that was facing this committee

[0:29:18] Trustee Bernardo: should be explained what the trade-offs were not the trade-offs it's wrong way of putting it but

[0:29:23] Trustee Bernardo: just what the diverse views were and the character of the struggle uh so that trust council understands

[0:29:32] Trustee Bernardo: understands that the issues that many other trustees care about, for example, if you want

[0:29:45] Trustee Bernardo: to call them fiscal conservatives or just people who just are not that satisfied with

[0:29:49] Trustee Bernardo: the planning process, so that it's understood that both sides of this debate, that people

[0:29:55] Trustee Bernardo: who weren't on this committee know that this thing has been fully discussed.

[0:30:00] Trustee Bernardo: those issues were resolved as best as we could by way of compromise and discussion

[0:30:06] Trustee Bernardo: that this is in fact what we're recommending as a committee and we stand behind it

[0:30:12] Trustee Bernardo: because the process requires that that's a long-winded way of saying i think i might need

[0:30:18] Trustee Bernardo: more than four minutes uh you know uh might be as much as you know six or eight or ten i don't know

[0:30:26] Trustee Bernardo: but why don't we allocate for that opportunity let's let's run in 10 minutes there if that's

[0:30:33] Trustee Bernardo: okay with people and

[0:30:34] Voice 10: if you can be briefer that'd be great trust me uh

[0:30:40] Voice 9: i would be thrilled

[0:30:44] Voice 9: uh does anybody have any other comments about that item no

[0:30:52] Trustee Bernardo: and if i understand what you had

[0:30:53] Trustee Bernardo: said before director mobs uh this will simply be uh the resolution will read that we approve

[0:31:00] Trustee Bernardo: to approve the trust package.

[0:31:02] Voice 15: As amended.

[0:31:03] Trustee Bernardo: As amended, right.

[0:31:05] Trustee Bernardo: And

[0:31:05] Voice 15: I'll make sure all of those changes are made.

[0:31:08] Trustee Bernardo: All right, could you please direct us then

[0:31:10] Trustee Bernardo: to the next item that we need to think about?

[0:31:12] Voice 15: Sure, page 37, agenda item 752.

[0:31:16] Voice 15: This is the budget assumptions and principles document,

[0:31:18] Voice 15: which by now I think trust council has seen three times.

[0:31:22] Voice 15: Well, I think two actually.

[0:31:24] Voice 15: So there's been a few updates made to that document,

[0:31:27] Voice 15: which have been presented in blue font

[0:31:28] Voice 15: so that it's easy for council to see

[0:31:30] Voice 15: where things have changed um fpc can direct further changes if they wish otherwise this

[0:31:36] Voice 15: just goes forward as part of practice i

[0:31:39] Trustee Bernardo: have nothing to add does any other trustee have any

[0:31:42] Trustee Bernardo: comments about

[0:31:42] Voice 9: this area next item please director uh

[0:31:50] Voice 15: 753 on page 45 of the agenda this is the

[0:31:53] Voice 15: budget overview document so this is where information on the entire budget is included

[0:32:00] Voice 15: so i will be updating this document for the changes that have been directed by financial

[0:32:04] Voice 15: financial planning committee today to remove funding for one of the in-person trust council

[0:32:08] Voice 15: meetings, et cetera. And then this will accompany the budget to trust council. So this is the

[0:32:14] Voice 15: opportunity for trustees to provide feedback. If something you found was an error, or if you

[0:32:20] Voice 15: thought something was unclear, you can provide that feedback and I can incorporate those changes

[0:32:23] Voice 15: before this goes forward.

[0:32:27] Trustee Bernardo: Do any trustees

[0:32:29] Voice 9: have any comments about this item? Seeing none,

[0:32:36] Voice 9: Next item, please, Director.

[0:32:38] Trustee Bernardo: Sorry.

[0:32:39] Trustee Bernardo: Sorry.

[0:32:40] Trustee Bernardo: Yes, thanks.

[0:32:41] Trustee Bernardo: I see Trustee Boland has her hand up.

[0:32:43] Trustee Bernardo: Go ahead.

[0:32:44] Voice 1: Just a quick one.

[0:32:46] Voice 1: Julia, the issue I raised about the portion of the budget,

[0:32:50] Voice 1: you will update that in the next package, yeah?

[0:32:53] Voice 1: I think it was the Islands Trust Conservancy portion.

[0:32:58] Voice 15: Yes.

[0:32:59] Voice 15: So that is part of the Islands Trust Conservancy Board request.

[0:33:04] Voice 15: that's at 759 so it was identified there there's some mistakes in in some of the numbers so those

[0:33:11] Voice 15: will be fixed before this goes to trust council but the numbers are correct in the briefing we're

[0:33:19] Voice 15: looking at right now it's the attachment they will be fixed trustee

[0:33:23] Voice 9: elliott thank you chair

[0:33:25] Trustee Elliott: um i just had a question about the five-year average actual spends on projects um just seeing

[0:33:33] Trustee Elliott: is that was an item for discussion yesterday, $463,000 versus a proposed $700,000. Do we need

[0:33:42] Trustee Elliott: to flesh that out a little bit more, add any more context? Are we talking about a median over the

[0:33:49] Trustee Elliott: five years or is this, you know, what's the high-low of overspend? Just so that we have that

[0:33:57] Trustee Elliott: written in case there's discussion.

[0:34:00] Voice 15: I could certainly update the report to include more

[0:34:03] Voice 15: information in that area for example we could break it out between local trust committee

[0:34:07] Voice 15: project underspending versus strategic plan underspending versus operational

[0:34:11] Voice 15: so that was something that came up yesterday I can include that information I can include

[0:34:16] Voice 15: the median as well as the average so that's if the committee thinks that's a value absolutely

[0:34:21] Voice 15: you can direct staff to make that change and I will do that do

[0:34:24] Trustee Bernardo: any trustees have any objection to

[0:34:27] Trustee Bernardo: Trustee Elliott's wish to have that item fleshed

[0:34:33] Voice 9: out a bit more. I think by consent, that's

[0:34:39] Voice 9: Director Mobbs, if you could accommodate that.

[0:34:44] Voice 8: I can. Thank you, Chair.

[0:34:47] Voice 8: Okay.

[0:34:54] Voice 15: The next series of items are simply attachments to that briefing. So it's the

[0:35:00] Voice 15: budget in numerical form. It's the business cases for all of the projects, surplus funds,

[0:35:05] Voice 15: funds, allocations, et cetera.

[0:35:07] Voice 15: So again, those simply get advanced to trust council

[0:35:10] Voice 15: with the package, unless there's feedback from trustees

[0:35:12] Voice 15: on any of those particular items and direction for change.

[0:35:17] Trustee Bernardo: And those are mostly historical documents

[0:35:21] Trustee Bernardo: basically for background, are they not?

[0:35:24] Voice 15: They are.

[0:35:26] Voice 15: So some of the business cases have been updated recently

[0:35:30] Voice 15: to reflect some of the changes

[0:35:32] Voice 15: that have been made at committees,

[0:35:33] Voice 15: but they have been seen already.

[0:35:35] Voice 15: already do

[0:35:38] Trustee Bernardo: any trustees have any comments about these um appendices or effectively with our

[0:35:43] Trustee Bernardo: appendices to the main attraction nope it doesn't look like it all right um

[0:35:51] Trustee Bernardo: that that speeds things

[0:35:56] Voice 15: along yes

[0:35:57] Trustee Bernardo: that would appear to have that all covered is there anything else we need to address

[0:36:00] Trustee Bernardo: with respect to the uh these materials and uh if not uh is this the time to return to the resolution

[0:36:08] Trustee Bernardo: resolution.

[0:36:09] Voice 15: So that's the entirety of agenda item 7.5, the budget materials that are going to

[0:36:14] Voice 15: Council. So now would be the time to return the resolution if there's nothing else. Thank you.

[0:36:20] Trustee Bernardo: Could we have that resolution put up on the screen again?

[0:36:23] Voice 10: Mr. Chair, if I might?

[0:36:25] Trustee Bernardo: Yes, Trustee Leckham.

[0:36:28] Voice 10: Through the Chair, does not the special tax requisition request RFD need to be approved

[0:36:35] Voice 10: moved at this time in order to be included in the budget?

[0:36:38] Voice 15: That's next on the agenda at 7.6.

[0:36:40] Voice 15: We're gonna tackle them as separate items.

[0:36:42] Voice 10: All right, so we don't need to consider that

[0:36:45] Voice 10: in forwarding the budget to council.

[0:36:47] Voice 9: Correct.

[0:36:48] Voice 9: Okay, thank you.

[0:36:54] Voice 9: So

[0:36:54] Trustee Bernardo: does this resolution have to be tweaked

[0:36:56] Trustee Bernardo: so it says that the financial planning committee

[0:36:58] Trustee Bernardo: forward the budget materials as amended?

[0:37:01] Voice 9: Yes. Yes.

[0:37:02] Voice 9: Correct.

[0:37:06] Voice 9: If you like, sir, I'll move that.

[0:37:08] Voice 10: Could you please?

[0:37:10] Voice 10: I move that the financial planning committee

[0:37:11] Voice 10: Committee forward the budget materials at agenda 7.5

[0:37:14] Voice 10: as amended to trust council for approval.

[0:37:20] Voice 9: Do we have a seconder?

[0:37:22] Voice 9: I think Trustee

[0:37:25] Voice 3: Elliot was indicating seconding.

[0:37:28] Trustee Bernardo: A real hand, not an artificial one.

[0:37:30] Trustee Bernardo: Yes, we have a seconder.

[0:37:33] Trustee Bernardo: Formally, do we have anybody

[0:37:36] Trustee Bernardo: who wishes to debate this motion?

[0:37:41] Trustee Bernardo: Seeing none, I'm going to call a vote.

[0:37:43] Trustee Bernardo: Please by a show of hands indicate

[0:37:45] Trustee Bernardo: whether you approve this motion or not.

[0:37:54] Voice 9: and nine in favor okay thank you all right well that's taken care of um

[0:38:08] Trustee Elliott: well done just have a moment to congratulate this committee

[0:38:15] Trustee Elliott: maybe

[0:38:15] Trustee Bernardo: next year we can uh we we'll we'll need fewer roll aids to get through the exercise

[0:38:23] Voice 5: champagne perhaps perhaps

[0:38:25] Trustee Bernardo: we can move on now to item 7.6 because uh trustees want to leave at 2 30.

[0:38:33] Voice 15: uh yes so i will take us through this um so financial planning committee has the responsibility

[0:38:39] Voice 15: to recommend to trust council if any initiatives should be funded by a special property tax

[0:38:44] Voice 15: requisition um so there haven't been any identified local trust committee projects

[0:38:49] Voice 15: um that are in the general budget identified for special requisition however we do have a request

[0:38:55] Voice 15: from the salt spring and local trust committee to fund the ongoing work of swipa by a special

[0:39:01] Voice 15: requisition so the original budget included $75,500 for the SWPA special tax requisition

[0:39:08] Voice 15: that amount has been reduced to $43,500 at the request of the local trust committee I think just

[0:39:13] Voice 15: last week so I would offer I think it's best for either the chair of the local trust committee

[0:39:20] Voice 15: or for the director of planning to speak to this item if there's any questions

[0:39:29] Voice 9: trustee Patrick I'll

[0:39:32] Trustee Patrick: offer to help Tim thank

[0:39:36] Trustee Bernardo: you trustee Luck I see you have your hand up do you

[0:39:38] Trustee Bernardo: have a question on this issue or negative sorry and trustee Patrick you're just stepping up to

[0:39:45] Trustee Bernardo: speak to it as chair of well

[0:39:48] Trustee Patrick: yeah I'll help for the local trust committee and for the local trust

[0:39:52] Trustee Patrick: committee yes and

[0:39:52] Trustee Patrick: my role at the I'm the appointed local trust committee member to this body as well

[0:39:59] Trustee Patrick: Well, right.

[0:40:01] Voice 9: I see Trustee Evans has a question.

[0:40:05] Voice 4: Just a quick point of privilege. Can we scroll

[0:40:07] Voice 4: down so I can see the numbers again? I just wanted to refresh my memory on them. Just for

[0:40:14] Voice 4: comments. A

[0:40:15] Voice 8: little bit further. Yeah, thank you. Just I just wanted to see the headlines. Thank you.

[0:40:22] Trustee Patrick: This has been a project that's been in place since 2014, I believe. So that was not in my term.

[0:40:31] Trustee Patrick: term um the salt spring um island watershed protection alliance was formed to do the

[0:40:40] Trustee Patrick: coordinating role that is in the in cooperation with part of our mandate in regard to uh water

[0:40:46] Trustee Patrick: and it's it's it's really about the the health of the water systems and uh the key main agencies

[0:40:55] Trustee Patrick: that are involved are the capital regional district the province the islands trust and

[0:41:00] Trustee Patrick: And North Salt Spring Water District, which is the largest ratepayers association on the island, has the largest water service.

[0:41:12] Trustee Patrick: Last term, the local trust committee took steps to, lack of another word, modernize Swiffer to look at what, you know, take the leadership role to update it.

[0:41:24] Trustee Patrick: The process was a little slower than I would have liked to have seen.

[0:41:27] Trustee Patrick: but we were capable we we did retain one of the best consultants that was possible here in the

[0:41:32] Trustee Patrick: province province econics uh to do a review they issued a report uh to us last spring called the

[0:41:41] Trustee Patrick: salt spring island watershed uh swipa situation analysis and options identification and had a

[0:41:47] Trustee Patrick: number of recommendations including the creation of a multi-agency uh strategic plan uh that is

[0:41:55] Trustee Patrick: i wish it was done it's almost done i heard from the consulting team today that it's it's on the

[0:42:01] Trustee Patrick: verge of being done but the big difference is this is really about the in cooperation with

[0:42:06] Trustee Patrick: it'll have the four logos from those four agencies on the cover and there are a number of

[0:42:14] Trustee Patrick: recommendations that still need to be worked out i mean that are incorporated into that strategic

[0:42:18] Trustee Patrick: plan so this is just that this goes forward to trust council where the amount was lowered to

[0:42:24] Trustee Patrick: to take into account that there was some surplus funds

[0:42:27] Trustee Patrick: that remained, and I'm happy to answer any questions.

[0:42:32] Voice 9: I see Director Moves, you had your hand up.

[0:42:38] Voice 9: Audio, please.

[0:42:41] Voice 15: If there's questions for Trustee Patrick,

[0:42:43] Voice 15: probably best that they come before me.

[0:42:45] Voice 15: I skipped over agenda item 761, which is feedback

[0:42:49] Voice 15: that was received from public consultation on this project.

[0:42:54] Voice 15: But if trustees have questions on a project overall,

[0:42:56] Voice 15: probably best that's addressed first.

[0:42:58] Trustee Patrick: I was going to say, I should mention,

[0:42:59] Trustee Patrick: So there is the feedback here, and I think there is some history and some understanding, and it relates to other items that are on our follow-up action list, that a special tax requisition is accounted for the entire local trust area, not specific islands within it.

[0:43:16] Trustee Patrick: By-law 154 and the process of SWPA was designed to really be about the local trust area, not just Salt Spring, but Salt Spring dominates it absolutely.

[0:43:26] Trustee Patrick: Absolutely. And you can see there are a number of comments from the Piers Island Association was very, they're not happy about being included in the special tax requisition and it's understandable. And that's why we've asked for work to be done through this committee on tax requisitions going forward.

[0:43:47] Voice 9: Trustee Owens.

[0:43:50] Voice 4: Thank you. I was just hoping for a little bit more clarification on what you've just talked about that, Trustee Patrick.

[0:43:56] Voice 4: Patrick. So you just said that, and maybe I just misunderstood, the special tax requisition for

[0:44:04] Voice 4: the 43,000 is applied to all islands or just to Salt Spring, if you could answer that quickly.

[0:44:11] Voice 4: Did I misunderstand that?

[0:44:13] Trustee Patrick: Or I'll look to Director Mobs to probably answer how that works.

[0:44:19] Voice 15: Sure. So special property tax requisitions by legislation have to be applied to all islands

[0:44:25] Voice 15: in a local trust area. So a local trust area is going to have multiple islands traditionally. So

[0:44:32] Voice 15: Salt Spring is the main, the largest and main island in the Salt Spring Island local trust area.

[0:44:36] Voice 15: There's also associated islands, additional islands. So Piers Island is one of those islands

[0:44:41] Voice 15: that Trustee Patrick has referred to. So this levy is levied on all properties within the local

[0:44:47] Voice 15: trust area, not just Salt Spring Island. And that is not something that we have the ability to

[0:44:53] Voice 15: change it is legislated okay

[0:44:56] Voice 4: so then um my other question is if this is something that is only for

[0:45:00] Voice 4: the benefit of salt spring islanders um and correct me if i'm wrong on that assumption but

[0:45:06] Voice 4: then shouldn't this be um a business case for um just for salt spring rather than all of the

[0:45:15] Voice 4: islands except

[0:45:19] Trustee Patrick: the the original intent was to to service all of the local trust area going forward

[0:45:25] Trustee Patrick: And those are some of the recommendations as we as we implement this new strategic plan is to try to bring the activities more under the local trust committee on Salt Spring to directed to Salt Spring, if that's where they are.

[0:45:38] Trustee Patrick: are uh piers island is it's a there's our islands it's complicated as well that we have a local

[0:45:44] Trustee Patrick: trust area that straddles two different electoral areas so we have islands that are in the southern

[0:45:50] Trustee Patrick: gulf island electoral area rather than in the salt spring electoral area and crd is a major

[0:45:57] Trustee Patrick: player in this and so um it's complicated uh and

[0:46:03] Trustee Patrick: i i'm struggling to

[0:46:05] Voice 4: understand this well

[0:46:06] Trustee Bernardo: Well, in my understanding, from what Director Mubbs stated to address your specific issue,

[0:46:13] Trustee Bernardo: Trustee Evans, is that we're somewhat shackled by legalities here in that this special tax

[0:46:21] Trustee Bernardo: requisition process only allows us to approve special tax requisitions by local trust area,

[0:46:30] Trustee Bernardo: by trust area, not individual islands within trust areas.

[0:46:36] Trustee Bernardo: Is that correct? Have I got that right?

[0:46:39] Voice 8: That is correct.

[0:46:40] Voice 8: Sorry,

[0:46:43] Voice 4: the local trust area, does that include all 13 islands?

[0:46:48] Voice 15: No. So the trust area is the entirety of the trust.

[0:46:54] Voice 15: The local trust area is smaller boundaries that the local trust committee has the authority over.

[0:47:00] Voice 15: Within that local trust area, you may have more than, you traditionally have more than one island.

[0:47:04] Voice 15: uh so there's salt spring piers island bright island a couple other islands in the salt spring

[0:47:09] Voice 15: island area okay that that

[0:47:11] Voice 4: was the piece that i was that i was trying to grasp i i wasn't sure if

[0:47:15] Voice 4: i'd misunderstood that when when trustee patrick was speaking um my last comment on the um the

[0:47:21] Voice 4: highlights was it looks like out of the um the survey that was done there is a strong opposition

[0:47:29] Voice 4: to this moving forward, I was just wondering

[0:47:32] Voice 4: if we could have a little bit more context around that

[0:47:35] Voice 4: and what the benefits are of this moving forward

[0:47:38] Voice 4: and why there is such sort of

[0:47:44] Voice 8: opposition to it.

[0:47:50] Voice 8: If it's

[0:47:51] Voice 15: useful, Mr. Chair, we can have the Director

[0:47:53] Voice 15: of Trust Area Services present the document related

[0:47:55] Voice 15: to the feedback.

[0:47:59] Trustee Bernardo: Well, is the document gonna have the information we need

[0:48:02] Trustee Bernardo: or is this something that substantively Trustee Patrick is in a better position to elaborate?

[0:48:11] Voice 15: The document would highlight the results of the survey that was undertaken in the Salt

[0:48:17] Voice 15: Spring Island Local Trust area on the special tax requisition. The reasons for why people

[0:48:24] Voice 15: have those views might be, is not something staff would take on. That would probably be trustees.

[0:48:32] Trustee Bernardo: Understood. Perhaps we could call, as the director Bob suggested, call on the director of planning to discuss the results of the public engagement.

[0:48:42] Voice 8: Director of Trust Area Services, Claire Freider.

[0:48:44] Voice 9: Oh, sorry.

[0:48:48] Voice 8: Hello, committee.

[0:48:49] Voice 14: Good afternoon. Just getting back up to the page here.

[0:48:53] Voice 14: So essentially, we have administered a survey and we're open to receiving emails during the engagement period.

[0:49:01] Voice 14: and the results there are that we had 143 survey responses

[0:49:05] Voice 14: and four emails, which is generally consistent

[0:49:08] Voice 14: with the type of responses we've had.

[0:49:10] Voice 14: We had, last year was a particularly engaged year

[0:49:13] Voice 14: in terms of survey responses generally on the budget.

[0:49:17] Voice 14: In terms of completion,

[0:49:19] Voice 14: you had a fairly high completion rate as far as surveys go.

[0:49:22] Voice 14: 30% of your respondents were from Piers Island.

[0:49:25] Voice 14: So that's something to note.

[0:49:27] Voice 14: That's an unusually high amount of engagement

[0:49:29] Voice 14: from an associated island.

[0:49:31] Voice 14: And you've got 68% of the feedback saying

[0:49:34] Voice 14: they don't support the special property tax requisition.

[0:49:38] Voice 14: Generally, 48% felt that the amount proposed was too much,

[0:49:42] Voice 14: 7% too little, 11% right,

[0:49:45] Voice 14: and 23 did not express an opinion or didn't know.

[0:49:48] Voice 14: And then in terms of, yeah, I think I'll leave it at that.

[0:49:51] Voice 14: Again, we promoted the survey in various methods,

[0:49:55] Voice 14: but I would be happy to provide more summary

[0:49:58] Voice 14: if that's helpful.

[0:50:00] Trustee Bernardo: I see, Trustee Bowman, you have your hand up.

[0:50:03] Voice 1: Thank you.

[0:50:04] Voice 1: Sorry, my internet dropped, so I disappeared.

[0:50:07] Voice 1: So I didn't hear everything that was said.

[0:50:10] Voice 1: So I have a couple of things.

[0:50:12] Voice 1: Number one, I don't really understand the strength of this feedback, like what the impact can be.

[0:50:20] Voice 1: Because last year, 75% of the people who responded said that they didn't agree with the tax.

[0:50:27] Voice 1: This year, it's 68%.

[0:50:29] Voice 1: Now, you know, I think there's a requirement to go for public feedback when you have a special tax requisition.

[0:50:39] Voice 1: But, you know, is it a referendum or what, basically?

[0:50:44] Voice 1: And the other thing I would comment on is that I am looking forward to hearing the results of the work that's been done this year,

[0:50:53] Voice 1: monitoring the lake and some wells. I'm really looking forward to it.

[0:50:57] Voice 1: I think it'll be a great addition to our knowledge of water.

[0:51:02] Voice 1: But I'm also concerned, you know, Pierce Island don't want to be part of it.

[0:51:06] Voice 1: And I've heard at various trust meetings over the last year or two, they have presented

[0:51:11] Voice 1: or written multiple times to ask why they're included when or to ask that they are excluded.

[0:51:19] Voice 1: And then I think about the fact that it's the water districts who have come together.

[0:51:26] Voice 1: And I'm not sure what the percentage of people on Salisbury Island is who are not in those water districts and whether that should also be a consideration.

[0:51:36] Voice 1: I don't know whether that's a very small number compared to the number who are in those water serviced areas.

[0:51:42] Voice 1: But it's, you know, this idea that of whether the work that's being done will, you know, is for all of them and whether some people, you know, may feel that they're not going to benefit as much as other people.

[0:52:00] Voice 1: Thank you.

[0:52:02] Trustee Bernardo: Trustee Bowman, your questions have both a technical and also political component to them.

[0:52:13] Trustee Bernardo: uh i see trustee patrick happily has her hand up i think your question is probably better

[0:52:19] Trustee Bernardo: directed to her unless uh unless i'm wrong trustee patrick happy

[0:52:25] Trustee Patrick: to take it on it's complex about 60

[0:52:29] Trustee Patrick: percent of the water comes from groundwater and swipa deals with with its watershed protection

[0:52:34] Trustee Patrick: including groundwater because that's often missed our water services we do have some groundwater

[0:52:41] Trustee Patrick: water-based water services, but the majority focus on the lakes and the watersheds associated

[0:52:46] Trustee Patrick: with the lakes. And we have a very broad mandate to look at the health of the watersheds because

[0:52:50] Trustee Patrick: it's not just drinking water that supplies on the health of these water systems. It's the ecosystems

[0:52:55] Trustee Patrick: as well that need healthy systems. Our largest watershed on Salt Spring is the Fulford Watershed

[0:53:11] Trustee Patrick: so so like i said it applies to everybody on the island um i've i've heard from peers i feel for

[0:53:20] Trustee Patrick: for pears island and i and it is frustrating uh that this has been the way it is um but

[0:53:27] Trustee Patrick: hopefully as we implement the strategic plan and uh there's an opportunity for the crd to take a

[0:53:34] Trustee Patrick: far more active role in the future of service like regional district nanaimo and the cowichan valley

[0:53:41] Trustee Patrick: regional districts that have have that it's been salt spring that stepped up it is a very

[0:53:45] Trustee Patrick: complicated messy overriding jurisdictional uh problem of watershed protection i think this is

[0:53:53] Trustee Patrick: an example of how to work in cooperation with i'm looking forward to the strategic plan having

[0:53:58] Trustee Patrick: the four agencies logos on the front it will not be a swivel logo it'll be the four agencies logos

[0:54:04] Trustee Patrick: we set the bar high and we really want this to demonstrate what in cooperation looks like

[0:54:09] Trustee Patrick: Like, will we be having to use a special tax requisition for the future of it?

[0:54:13] Trustee Patrick: Those are things that need to be debated and looked at how we service our end, the local

[0:54:18] Trustee Patrick: trust committee's end of the strategic plan going forward.

[0:54:24] Trustee Bernardo: I would step in to observe that this dilemma that the Piers Island folks are being frustrated

[0:54:32] Trustee Bernardo: by is actually a pretty common issue with all local government in the sense that local

[0:54:40] Trustee Bernardo: local taxation for local government is it's not a user pay system uh inevitably uh some rate payers

[0:54:47] Trustee Bernardo: are what they pay is going to end up going to services in the community that they don't

[0:54:53] Trustee Bernardo: necessarily draw upon or they don't necessarily benefit benefit them directly uh uh it's uh

[0:55:00] Trustee Bernardo: you know i don't i can't speak to the equities of what's happening with piers island in that

[0:55:05] Trustee Bernardo: local trust area but that is a phenomenon that does you know like all local governments face

[0:55:10] Trustee Bernardo: that to some extent.

[0:55:12] Trustee Bernardo: Mr. Marlowe, I see you had your hand up.

[0:55:14] Voice 3: Yeah, I just wanted to just let you know,

[0:55:17] Voice 3: there's a question around the public consultation.

[0:55:22] Voice 3: It's a trust council policy

[0:55:24] Voice 3: on the special requisition policy

[0:55:27] Voice 3: that public consultation take place.

[0:55:29] Voice 3: It's not a legislative requirement

[0:55:32] Voice 3: for special tax levies or the budget.

[0:55:36] Voice 9: And it's not a referendum?

[0:55:39] Voice 3: No, it's not a referendum, it's to obtain feedback.

[0:55:43] Voice 9: understood thank you trustee evans oh uh right thank you um

[0:55:49] Voice 4: it sounds like a lot of really good

[0:55:51] Voice 4: work has already been done on this topic um so that's wonderful i just have one more question

[0:55:59] Voice 4: for trustee patrick um how close are you to the completion of this project because i heard you

[0:56:06] Voice 4: say there could potentially be another um request down the road i just out of curiosity i'm just

[0:56:13] Voice 4: Just wondering how close are you to reaching your desired end position on this?

[0:56:23] Trustee Patrick: The strategic plan, getting the multi-agency strategic plan is a big piece of that.

[0:56:29] Trustee Patrick: And it's what our recommendations.

[0:56:32] Trustee Patrick: And one of the recommendations from the review that we did to start off that was to incorporate more of the actions directly under the local trust committee

[0:56:42] Trustee Patrick: committee or within to the Salt Spring office. So that's how quickly we implemented the staff.

[0:56:47] Trustee Patrick: The plan is being developed by staff. I have not seen it. The staff of all four organizations have

[0:56:52] Trustee Patrick: been devoted to it and working on it well. And like I said, I'm excited about seeing it. It

[0:56:57] Trustee Patrick: includes schedules and funding and all of those things in it. But I'm hoping that the intent is

[0:57:03] Trustee Patrick: that we sort of absorb those actions under our regular business. And hopefully one more year,

[0:57:12] Trustee Patrick: i really hope i've been saying this for like three years now and this better be the last one

[0:57:19] Trustee Bernardo: all right thank you um i see uh mr marler your hand is still up is that uh do you have something

[0:57:25] Trustee Bernardo: on no

[0:57:26] Voice 3: my apologies thank you uh

[0:57:28] Trustee Bernardo: trustee evans your hand is still up um that's been a fairly

[0:57:35] Trustee Bernardo: full discussion in this item uh unless i hear otherwise i'm going to presume that um

[0:57:40] Trustee Bernardo: we're done with it and it is a request for a decision.

[0:57:45] Trustee Bernardo: Is that right?

[0:57:47] Voice 15: That's correct.

[0:57:48] Voice 15: We'd be looking for a resolution of the committee

[0:57:49] Voice 15: to support this.

[0:57:51] Trustee Bernardo: And is the resolution before us in some fashion,

[0:57:54] Trustee Bernardo: the language at least?

[0:57:56] Trustee Patrick: It is.

[0:57:58] Trustee Patrick: I can make the motion, Chair.

[0:58:01] Trustee Bernardo: Go ahead, Trustee Patrick,

[0:58:03] Trustee Bernardo: as soon as we see the language up there on the screen.

[0:58:05] Trustee Patrick: There it is, it's made it.

[0:58:06] Trustee Patrick: I move that the Financial Planning Committee

[0:58:08] Trustee Patrick: recommend to trust council that the Salt Spring Island

[0:58:11] Trustee Patrick: at local trust committees request for the 2324

[0:58:15] Trustee Patrick: special tax requisition to fund work associated

[0:58:18] Trustee Patrick: with the delegated powers under bylaw number 154

[0:58:22] Trustee Patrick: be approved in the amount of 43,500.

[0:58:27] Voice 19: I will second that Trustee Yates.

[0:58:31] Voice 9: Thank you.

[0:58:34] Voice 9: Does any trustee wish to debate this motion?

[0:58:38] Voice 9: I will now call a vote on the motion

[0:58:41] Voice 9: by a show of hands, please.

[0:58:42] Voice 9: okay that's uh 10

[0:58:50] Voice 3: trustees that carries thank you please lower your hands moving

[0:58:58] Trustee Bernardo: on to the

[0:58:58] Trustee Bernardo: next item on the agenda bylaws 7.7 financial planned bylaw uh quest for decision

[0:59:06] Trustee Bernardo: i can

[0:59:10] Voice 15: speak to that briefly thank you so

[0:59:12] Voice 15: along with the draft budget for 2023-24 that goes to

[0:59:16] Voice 15: trust council there's also two bylaws um that will make their way to trust council that are

[0:59:21] Voice 15: are associated with the annual budget.

[0:59:23] Voice 15: The first is bylaw 191,

[0:59:25] Voice 15: which is the financial plan bylaw 2023-24.

[0:59:29] Voice 15: So that is the five-year financial plan

[0:59:32] Voice 15: that will be sent to the minister for approval

[0:59:35] Voice 15: once Trust Council has approved the annual budget.

[0:59:38] Voice 15: So staff have taken a first draft

[0:59:40] Voice 15: at the five-year financial plan using the assumptions

[0:59:43] Voice 15: that are reflected in the request for decision.

[0:59:46] Voice 15: Of course, this is going to change

[0:59:49] Voice 15: when we get to Trust Council

[0:59:50] Voice 15: for any changes that Trust Council makes to the budget.

[0:59:53] Voice 15: The budget for next year represents year one

[0:59:56] Voice 15: of the five-year financial plan.

[0:59:58] Voice 15: And year one...

[1:00:00] Voice 15: informs year two through five. So if there's changes to year one, there will be changes to

[1:00:05] Voice 15: the future years. So staff have listed the assumptions that they've used in building the

[1:00:10] Voice 15: five-year plan beginning on page 204 of the budget. Inflation is the primary driver for

[1:00:16] Voice 15: changes to the budget year over year. Of course, we expect staff salaries to rise generally in

[1:00:22] Voice 15: line with inflation. We also expect spending on supplies and with contractors to rise generally

[1:00:28] Voice 15: in line with inflation uh if the committee wishes i can walk through each individual assumption

[1:00:35] Voice 15: made uh beginning on page 204 of the agenda package but i am wary of time so um i leave

[1:00:42] Voice 15: it up to the committee if you'd like me to walk through those assumptions or not uh

[1:00:47] Trustee Bernardo: just a point

[1:00:48] Trustee Bernardo: of clarification if i may uh director this five-year financial plan is this something that

[1:00:56] Trustee Bernardo: That is effectively the decisions that are made of this year's budget change some of the assumptions or change some of the formulas that are applied to do the projection.

[1:01:08] Trustee Bernardo: So this five-year financial plan has to be refreshed annually, take into account the current year's adjustments or budget decisions.

[1:01:17] Trustee Bernardo: But fundamentally, the methodology doesn't change from year to year.

[1:01:20] Trustee Bernardo: It's a question of refreshing the projections.

[1:01:22] Trustee Bernardo: Is that correct or have I got that wrong?

[1:01:25] Voice 15: No, I think you're correct.

[1:01:28] Voice 15: The assumptions that are used to build a five-year plan are not going to change unless this committee reviews the assumptions and gives direction to the contrary.

[1:01:36] Voice 15: But if year one changes, of course, those assumptions applied to different numbers change.

[1:01:42] Voice 15: So you're correct.

[1:01:43] Trustee Bernardo: All right.

[1:01:44] Trustee Bernardo: So this plan has changed to the extent that we've made these decisions and approved this budget.

[1:01:51] Voice 15: That's right.

[1:01:52] Trustee Bernardo: So

[1:01:52] Voice 15: what you'll see is a slight amendment to the numbers in each of the budget years.

[1:01:57] Voice 15: All

[1:01:58] Voice 9: right. Trustee Evans.

[1:02:01] Voice 4: Thank you. I'm noticing that in next year's projected tax increase, we're looking at an 8 point, whatever it is, percent tax increase, an 8.3 percent tax increase.

[1:02:16] Voice 4: I just think that perhaps that could be spread over and we've got election year at a zero.

[1:02:25] Voice 4: is there a particular reason why the election year is set at a zero percent increase because

[1:02:31] Voice 4: that has a major effect on next year's budget yes

[1:02:37] Voice 15: so the reason year two of the five-year financial

[1:02:42] Voice 15: plan has a high tax increase is because year one of the plan which is the budget that we've just

[1:02:48] Voice 15: reviewed today has significant draws from the surplus fund to fund operations that means that

[1:02:56] Voice 15: there's no money for next year in the surplus fund to draw into that year's budget. So if we

[1:03:02] Voice 15: don't have surplus money to draw on, but we have the same level of spending, we have to find a

[1:03:08] Voice 15: different revenue source. Generally, that revenue source is taxation. We're limited in how much we

[1:03:12] Voice 15: can impact fees. Of course, fees are a product of how many people send in applications. Interest

[1:03:18] Voice 15: income is also outside of our control, grant income as well. So generally, to offset, we have

[1:03:23] Voice 15: to use taxation um in the if

[1:03:26] Trustee Bernardo: i if i can if i can step in here uh director i uh if i understand

[1:03:32] Trustee Bernardo: trustee evan's question uh you're describing the mechanics of how you get to the 8.3 but

[1:03:38] Trustee Bernardo: um i understand from previous explanations you've offered that it's really that it's this

[1:03:44] Trustee Bernardo: it's this two-step process that we engage in annually with respect to the surplus drawing

[1:03:49] Trustee Bernardo: drawing it out in order to cover expenses, that alleviates the need to have taxation.

[1:03:57] Trustee Bernardo: But because the surplus is lowered as we project forward, the logic is, well, you're going to have

[1:04:05] Trustee Bernardo: to raise taxes to meet that same amount the next year, except historically we have this underspend

[1:04:14] Trustee Bernardo: and that 8.3 number is almost certainly going to be lower than that because we're going to

[1:04:18] Trustee Bernardo: under-span on the budget this year. Is that right?

[1:04:21] Voice 4: If I may interrupt, that wasn't my question.

[1:04:25] Voice 9: Oh, I'm sorry.

[1:04:26] Voice 4: My question was, the election year is set at zero. Is there a particular reason why

[1:04:32] Voice 4: election year is set at zero, which is going to result in an 8.3? Can that be spread over to

[1:04:37] Voice 4: reduce the high?

[1:04:41] Voice 15: Yes, I understand your question. Trust Council has a policy that requires a

[1:04:46] Voice 15: minimum amount be retained in our surplus fund, that minimum amount has to be maintained each

[1:04:51] Voice 15: year. So in year one of this five-year plan, which is next year's budget that we've looked at,

[1:04:59] Voice 15: we are drawing out significant amounts of surplus. So the amount in surplus has been lowered. So then

[1:05:05] Voice 15: when we look at year two of the plan, which has the 8.3 tax increase, there's no money to draw

[1:05:10] Voice 15: out from surplus because it's been depleted. So we have to have a high tax increase in that year.

[1:05:20] Voice 15: Preceding years can smooth future years taxation. Future years cannot. So we can't tax in the

[1:05:28] Voice 15: election year 0% because then we're going to have two years where our surplus balance is actually

[1:05:33] Voice 15: below the minimum requirement, if that makes sense. So year two, if we don't tax that high,

[1:05:41] Voice 15: our minimum balance to be held in surplus will not be met. And even if we were to tax a higher

[1:05:47] Voice 15: amount in 2026-27, it doesn't fix the problem in 2024-25 that there's no surplus money.

[1:05:55] Voice 4: Yes, I understand that. But you're still showing a 0% increase, which normally will affect

[1:06:02] Voice 4: future years as well. And like Chair Bernardo said, there's a historical

[1:06:11] Voice 4: underspend that goes into surplus each year. So I'm assuming that at the end of the disapproved

[1:06:17] Voice 4: 2023-24 budget cycle, we'll be able to see how much of surplus funds there are to go back into

[1:06:26] Voice 4: the surplus fund account, which could potentially then lower that 8.3%, correct?

[1:06:31] Voice 15: Absolutely. So our

[1:06:33] Voice 15: trend at the trust is to underspend against budget and not draw all of the money out of surplus that

[1:06:38] Voice 15: we anticipate sometimes we actually do put money into surplus and so next year when we're preparing

[1:06:44] Voice 15: the next year's five-year financial plan uh we probably wouldn't see that 8.3 percent increase

[1:06:50] Voice 15: because reality would not have actually occurred in fiscal 2023-24 but when we are putting together

[1:06:56] Voice 15: the five-year financial plan we're looking strictly at budgets um and the reality is not

[1:07:02] Voice 15: taken into account so much so yeah

[1:07:05] Trustee Bernardo: all right thank you thank you uh if we can i'd like to

[1:07:09] Trustee Bernardo: move on we're we are starting to get a little tight for time but of course that's not a reason

[1:07:13] Trustee Bernardo: to inhibit uh necessary inquiries and discussion here um do we have it uh are we ready to uh

[1:07:22] Trustee Bernardo: call a vote on uh forwarding this to trust council i don't see any requests for any future debate so

[1:07:31] Trustee Bernardo: So could we have

[1:07:31] Voice 9: a show of hands, please?

[1:07:34] Voice 9: Or

[1:07:37] Trustee Bernardo: I guess I'm jumping the gun.

[1:07:38] Trustee Bernardo: I assume there's a resolution in here somewhere.

[1:07:42] Trustee Bernardo: Is there not?

[1:07:42] Trustee Bernardo: Trustee Yates.

[1:07:43] Trustee Patrick: Page two of the agenda package.

[1:07:45] Trustee Bernardo: Yes, thank you.

[1:07:49] Voice 9: May I have a motion?

[1:07:51] Voice 9: Or Trustee Yates, I'm sorry.

[1:07:55] Voice 19: Yeah, thank you, Chair Bernardo.

[1:07:57] Voice 19: I move that Financial Planning Committee

[1:08:00] Voice 19: forward bylaw 191, financial plan bylaw 2023-2024

[1:08:05] Voice 19: 2024 to trust council for approval a

[1:08:10] Voice 9: seconder please trustee graham seconding that motion

[1:08:13] Voice 9: uh any debate show of hands please that's 10 in favor thank you the

[1:08:32] Trustee Bernardo: next item uh

[1:08:34] Trustee Bernardo: anticipation boring bylaw uh briefly uh director mobs if you could address this

[1:08:40] Voice 15: Sure. So, this is really an administrative item. When the budget is approved each year,

[1:08:47] Voice 15: Trust Council also approves a by-law allowing Trust Council to borrow money if required. We

[1:08:53] Voice 15: haven't needed to borrow money in, I think, a couple of decades at the Islands Trust.

[1:08:58] Voice 15: However, this just means that if we do land in an instance where we need to borrow,

[1:09:02] Voice 15: the by-law has already been approved and there's no holdup in acquiring the funds.

[1:09:07] Voice 15: So I have reached out to the lenders that we would be working with to update the rates that

[1:09:13] Voice 15: we are likely to achieve if we need to borrow. They are quite favorable. Islands Trust is a

[1:09:18] Voice 15: pretty low risk entity to lend to. So we would be looking for Trust Council to approve this bylaw.

[1:09:25] Voice 15: Financial Planning Committee can forward it to Trust Council if they wish. If there's no questions

[1:09:30] Voice 15: or if there's any questions, I'll take those.

[1:09:35] Trustee Bernardo: What I'm hearing, this is a basically a resolution

[1:09:39] Trustee Bernardo: that we do every year because it's sunsets,

[1:09:42] Trustee Bernardo: it's a year by year thing

[1:09:43] Trustee Bernardo: and it's just been refreshed for this year.

[1:09:45] Voice 9: That's correct.

[1:09:47] Trustee Bernardo: Any debate, comment?

[1:09:50] Trustee Bernardo: Good, none.

[1:09:52] Trustee Bernardo: Whoops, Trustee Peterson.

[1:09:55] Voice 6: I'll make the motion if you're ready, sir.

[1:09:57] Voice 6: Please do.

[1:09:59] Voice 6: I move that financial planning committee

[1:10:02] Voice 6: for forward bylaw 192 revenue anticipation borrowing bylaw 2023-2024 to trust council

[1:10:09] Voice 6: for approval and

[1:10:11] Voice 19: i'll second that trustee yates thank

[1:10:14] Voice 9: you any debate further debate on the motion

[1:10:20] Voice 9: seeing none i call a vote that's 10 in favor so it carries thank you next

[1:10:33] Trustee Bernardo: item property tax

[1:10:33] Trustee Bernardo: assessment notice insert that's for information um briefly could that please be explained

[1:10:41] Trustee Bernardo: Yes.

[1:10:42] Voice 9: Oh,

[1:10:44] Trustee Bernardo: I see Trustee Bullen has her hand up.

[1:10:47] Trustee Bernardo: Oh, sorry.

[1:10:48] Trustee Bernardo: She does not.

[1:10:49] Trustee Bernardo: Director Frater.

[1:10:51] Voice 14: Thank you.

[1:10:52] Voice 14: Yes, we're bringing this to you as a briefing, but looking for your feedback.

[1:10:56] Voice 14: For the last few years, we have submitted a rural tax notice insert that's mailed out with the tax notices the province distributes.

[1:11:03] Voice 14: The province offers this opportunity free of charge.

[1:11:06] Voice 14: So it's a nice opportunity to communicate about the islands trust and communicate information that this committee and Council feel or our executive committee feel are important.

[1:11:16] Voice 14: I provided you here. Two examples that have gone in recent years.

[1:11:21] Voice 14: So we're just bringing it here for your consideration and feedback in particular in the tax notice if you could scroll down, Nancy there's a call out box as we call it a little bit further down there.

[1:11:31] Voice 14: There you see that call out box we've had it there one year it was around the natural area protection tax exemption program. That's what we're proposing to use again, but certainly are soliciting ideas.

[1:11:41] Voice 14: And in a previous year, we used a call out box on page 217 to encourage people to come out and vote during the election. So if there was a particular theme or program area that you wanted highlighted that would be of interest to us to know.

[1:11:55] Voice 14: and if there's different or additional information you'd like us to convey um we'd like to hear it

[1:12:00] Voice 14: um the next steps for this flyer are to um make any you know requests that you make incorporate

[1:12:07] Voice 14: them and then we'll provide it to executive committee for final sign off in march all right

[1:12:13] Trustee Bernardo: can i ask does this go uh at any stage does it go to um trust council or it's simply something

[1:12:19] Trustee Bernardo: that's disposed of by the executive committee

[1:12:21] Voice 14: it's it's it's approved by the executive committee as

[1:12:24] Voice 14: as part of their communications approval function.

[1:12:26] Voice 14: And the timing doesn't work typically to get it

[1:12:29] Voice 14: because we don't have a budget.

[1:12:30] Voice 14: We can only add the graphics

[1:12:31] Voice 14: once council's approved a budget.

[1:12:33] Voice 14: That's

[1:12:34] Trustee Bernardo: good, thank you.

[1:12:35] Voice 14: Yeah, and so yeah, the requirement is it must be submitted

[1:12:38] Voice 14: by March 31st and it doesn't arrive

[1:12:39] Voice 14: on

[1:12:40] Voice 13: people's doorsteps until June.

[1:12:43] Voice 9: Thank you, chair.

[1:12:47] Voice 19: I just like to note that it's a great opportunity

[1:12:50] Voice 19: to advertise NAPTAP in this one.

[1:12:54] Voice 19: And also last year, I had the opportunity of talking to four people about who received it, and they were all very happy to receive it.

[1:13:03] Voice 19: Thank you.

[1:13:05] Trustee Bernardo: Thank you.

[1:13:06] Trustee Bernardo: Trustee Boland?

[1:13:09] Voice 1: I would love to see the call out actually address participation in trust meetings.

[1:13:17] Voice 1: meetings. I would like to see an advertisement about the meeting calendar and the opportunity

[1:13:24] Voice 1: to attend electronically to try and get more participation going. That's what I would suggest.

[1:13:32] Voice 1: Thank you.

[1:13:36] Voice 9: Trustee Patrick?

[1:13:39] Trustee Patrick: I would echo Trustee Boland's comments, and I think maybe

[1:13:44] Trustee Patrick: they're at the bottom, but the subscription service really pushing that. I get lots of

[1:13:48] Trustee Patrick: of thanks from people when I keep reminding them of that. The one thing I would like to see

[1:13:53] Trustee Patrick: different, and I think we got to get aware of, is we keep saying the Islands Trust's mandated to

[1:13:58] Trustee Patrick: preserve and protect, and we use that over again. We preserve and protect, we preserve and protect,

[1:14:03] Trustee Patrick: but we keep forgetting the in cooperation with part of our mandate. And I think this is a chance

[1:14:07] Trustee Patrick: to educate people that, you know, we're not doing this alone. We do it with them, with you, the

[1:14:13] Trustee Patrick: taxpayer, as well as a whole bunch of other organizations. So I think we need, we just need

[1:14:17] Trustee Patrick: to be aware that whenever we say that's our mandate is to preserve and protect it's always

[1:14:21] Trustee Patrick: in cooperation with um should be added so

[1:14:27] Trustee Bernardo: uh it's am i hearing i'm not clear i'm not sure i uh am i

[1:14:32] Trustee Bernardo: hearing uh a request that uh this be uh these changes and i'm hearing two different changes

[1:14:39] Trustee Bernardo: that these two changes being made to the to the material yeah

[1:14:43] Trustee Patrick: i would i'm suggesting that yes when

[1:14:45] Trustee Patrick: when we, there are several references in this document

[1:14:48] Trustee Patrick: that just says what we are mandated to do,

[1:14:50] Trustee Patrick: but just to add the in cooperation with language.

[1:14:53] Trustee Bernardo: Director Frater, are you following the fine details

[1:14:56] Trustee Bernardo: of what the trustees would like to see?

[1:15:00] Voice 14: Yes, what I've heard so far is an interest

[1:15:02] Voice 14: in not putting, oh, I did hear an interest in NAPTEP,

[1:15:05] Voice 14: but also hearing an interest in using the call out box

[1:15:07] Voice 14: to perhaps have something like, you know,

[1:15:09] Voice 14: get involved or share your views kind of language.

[1:15:13] Voice 14: I know that trustee Peterson has his hands up and also

[1:15:18] Trustee Bernardo: trustee Patrick had of course

[1:15:23] Trustee Bernardo: recommendations with respect to language as well and I do see trustee Peterson please go ahead

[1:15:28] Trustee Bernardo: trustee Peterson yeah

[1:15:32] Voice 6: thank you chair staff will no doubt remember me bringing this up in the past

[1:15:38] Voice 6: But I would love it if we had the ability to put a little bit of an explanatory section in here on on how to read your tax, your your tax bill.

[1:15:57] Voice 6: I've done it enough times, you know, I'm quite confident myself.

[1:16:02] Voice 6: myself but I and I know that the bill looks different in in different trust areas or can

[1:16:08] Voice 6: look different in different trust areas depending on the regional district um certainly in our

[1:16:14] Voice 6: district it takes a little bit of doing it's it's not immediately clear um I would just love it if

[1:16:21] Voice 6: we could make it more clear uh so that that when people look at their bill they'll go okay that's

[1:16:27] Voice 6: what it is so uh and i know that there's some difficulties associated with all of the different

[1:16:33] Voice 6: regional districts and uh and and i don't expect this is going to get done this time but i just

[1:16:39] Voice 6: want to flag it as something that that i think would be a good thing to think about in the future

[1:16:42] Voice 6: trustee bowling uh

[1:16:45] Voice 1: i'd be happy to work with um laura and claire if others agreed to um look at

[1:16:53] Voice 1: to use in that call out box to encourage greater participation and you know per her suggestion to

[1:17:00] Voice 1: put in the information about subscribing etc so i don't know if that's going to fly or if you're

[1:17:06] Voice 1: happy to do it yourself claire no problem with that either thank you i'm

[1:17:12] Trustee Bernardo: going to suggest or

[1:17:13] Trustee Bernardo: raise the the way to expedite this is you know we've heard from the trustees we're interested

[1:17:21] Trustee Bernardo: in making these amendments to the document you've heard them outline what they have in mind

[1:17:27] Trustee Bernardo: are we content to subject to anybody objecting are we content to proceed by consent

[1:17:36] Trustee Bernardo: to enable those trustees to work with staff to amend the document along the lines that they've

[1:17:44] Trustee Bernardo: discussed today if somebody objects and we're gonna have to have a debate otherwise it seems

[1:17:48] Trustee Bernardo: to me we

[1:17:48] Voice 9: could just proceed by consent on that point thank you that looks like we can do that

[1:17:57] Voice 9: director freighter

[1:17:58] Voice 14: i'm happy to proceed and work with anyone who'd like to provide input i will

[1:18:01] Voice 14: just flag though um because this is distributed within seven different regional districts

[1:18:05] Voice 14: the how to read your tax statement um request might be difficult to accommodate

[1:18:12] Trustee Bernardo: well do your best i guess

[1:18:14] Voice 11: thank

[1:18:15] Trustee Bernardo: you all right um where are we here now right we have uh 7.9

[1:18:21] Trustee Bernardo: 9. We have a motion by Trustee Evans. Trustee Evans.

[1:18:26] Voice 4: Thank you. I couldn't see anything in the

[1:18:29] Voice 4: draft in the in the draft agenda as to which motion this was referring to. I have an idea as

[1:18:38] Voice 4: to which one it might be. So if I'm if I'm going down the wrong rabbit hole here I'm hoping that

[1:18:43] Voice 4: staff can correct me. I've had a conversation.

[1:18:47] Trustee Bernardo: Before you get underway I think and I'm sorry

[1:18:49] Trustee Bernardo: to interject trustee evans but i think it's probably a better idea if we address this

[1:18:53] Trustee Bernardo: little scheduling point now rather than interrupt your um presentation i'm looking at the clock here

[1:19:01] Trustee Bernardo: and my ambition to get this done by 2 30 looks like it's uh not going to happen uh we have a

[1:19:06] Trustee Bernardo: few other things to deal with uh

[1:19:08] Voice 9: are we content

[1:19:11] Trustee Bernardo: to carry on until

[1:19:13] Voice 9: three o'clock no

[1:19:17] Trustee Bernardo: uh i see trustee

[1:19:18] Trustee Bernardo: leckham everybody's waiting their hands and yes it looks like we're fine with that so uh trustee

[1:19:23] Trustee Bernardo: Peterson is unfortunately not able to do that but we will still have a quorum without him

[1:19:29] Trustee Bernardo: although we will not have the benefit of his input thank you for your understanding trustee

[1:19:36] Trustee Bernardo: go ahead trustee Evans please carry on thank

[1:19:39] Voice 4: you I remember I had a conversation with one of the

[1:19:43] Voice 4: staff at the trust council meeting when we had that in person regarding releasing the draft budget

[1:19:50] Voice 4: to the public. Like we do in corporate, you would have a news release that just houses the quarterly

[1:20:00] Voice 4: or figures. And I think that's what's being referred to here, although I'm not entirely

[1:20:07] Voice 4: sure if that's what was intended by staff. But we had discussed not sending this out to public

[1:20:17] Voice 4: for input, but it still needs to go out to public for information. So my recommendation would be

[1:20:22] Voice 4: that the draft budget be released as a news release with the highlighted major drivers of

[1:20:29] Voice 4: changes such as staff wage increases be identified. And so it's a simplified public-facing

[1:20:38] Voice 4: producing version that would be going out. And secondary to that was the idea that each quarter

[1:20:48] Voice 4: or at the end of the year, I'm not sure how it wants to be done, that we show the draft,

[1:20:56] Voice 4: we show the budget actuals where we're sitting for public information. I'm not sure if that's

[1:21:04] Voice 4: if that's actually done or if it's i i know that it's it's still public information because it's

[1:21:09] Voice 4: within the agenda so my request was can that be pulled out as a standalone news release for ease

[1:21:15] Voice 4: of public to find it so there's two things there like i said i'm not sure which one staff had

[1:21:21] Voice 4: intended for me to talk about here trustee

[1:21:25] Voice 9: yates thank

[1:21:27] Voice 19: you chair um am i correct um trustee evans

[1:21:31] Voice 19: is that you want the draft budget to go out for public information if that is so then i i probably

[1:21:38] Voice 19: would not i would not vote in favor of that it's

[1:21:42] Voice 4: already in the public domain it's part of this

[1:21:44] Voice 4: agenda package um so like i said i'm not sure which which item it was that's that staff were

[1:21:53] Voice 4: intending for me to speak to with this line item um that wasn't clarified with me so like i said

[1:21:59] Voice 4: I'm not sure. But the secondary part was as we go through the year and we've got the quarterly

[1:22:06] Voice 4: actuals, I think it's just good reporting from us to put that out as a news release where it's

[1:22:13] Voice 4: actually easily accessible to the public versus buried within an agenda.

[1:22:19] Trustee Bernardo: So if I can clarify,

[1:22:22] Trustee Bernardo: are you asking that or recommending or proposing that not just this draft, but as the quarterly

[1:22:28] Trustee Bernardo: numbers become available that they be published yes okay and is this a general point that you

[1:22:36] Trustee Bernardo: would like to see uh well draft budgets and uh quarterly reports done on an annual basis

[1:22:44] Trustee Bernardo: like i

[1:22:45] Voice 4: would say the reporting the actuals done on an annual basis i think that that's good

[1:22:51] Voice 4: transparency on on on our part the draft the only reason why i considered that was because it was

[1:22:58] Voice 4: The draft budget wasn't going forward to the public for consultation this year, but I think it would be good practice, therefore, to allow them to see the draft budget prior to us going to Trust Council in March.

[1:23:15] Voice 4: I just think that that would be a gain on

[1:23:19] Trustee Bernardo: this

[1:23:19] Voice 4: one particular year where we run out of time for public engagement to allow them to see it.

[1:23:27] Trustee Bernardo: You've made your point clearly. Thank you.

[1:23:29] Trustee Bernardo: Trustee Peterson?

[1:23:32] Voice 6: Just a question for staff.

[1:23:36] Voice 6: In terms of reporting out on the results of the budget debate at Trust Council,

[1:23:42] Voice 6: that happens as a matter of course, correct?

[1:23:45] Voice 11: Yes, that's correct.

[1:23:46] Voice 6: So I guess then it sounds like we'd be doing two reports out then,

[1:23:56] Voice 6: one prior to the decision and one after the decision if this motion goes ahead.

[1:24:00] Voice 6: head is that is that the idea not

[1:24:04] Voice 4: no not quite once once the once the quarterly um actual results

[1:24:08] Voice 4: have been um gone through trust council and confirmed then a news release is just released

[1:24:14] Voice 4: on the website saying here here's the actual spend confirmed spend as approved by trust council

[1:24:20] Voice 4: oh

[1:24:22] Voice 6: okay thank you because i thought you were talking about sending this draft budget

[1:24:28] Voice 6: out releasing it to the public prior to the March Council.

[1:24:32] Voice 6: And then, so it almost sounds like a duplication

[1:24:34] Voice 6: of effort to me, so thank you.

[1:24:36] Voice 4: No, no, okay, so like I said,

[1:24:37] Voice 4: there are two things on the table here.

[1:24:39] Voice 4: I didn't know which one I was supposed to be speaking to,

[1:24:41] Voice 4: so I'm just speaking to them both.

[1:24:43] Voice 4: Number one, this draft

[1:24:45] Trustee Bernardo: budget

[1:24:46] Voice 4: that we're looking at today.

[1:24:47] Trustee Bernardo: We have your point, like you were very clear.

[1:24:50] Voice 4: But Trustee Peterson's confused.

[1:24:51] Voice 4: confused yes

[1:24:52] Trustee Bernardo: well um not anymore I don't think

[1:24:57] Voice 9: yeah no I'm fine

[1:24:58] Voice 9: uh director mobs

[1:25:05] Voice 9: so

[1:25:06] Voice 15: yeah thanks so uh this is on the agenda um uh we were given notice from trustee Evans at

[1:25:12] Voice 15: the last meeting that she would be bringing something forward um so we didn't have more

[1:25:16] Voice 15: information to work with unfortunately I understand what you're asking trustee Evans

[1:25:20] Voice 15: I would suggest the committee talk about it these two items separately because there is some

[1:25:24] Voice 15: confusion so the first is let's release draft budget numbers from this financial planning

[1:25:29] Voice 15: committee um so that that's the one item should probably be talked about uh first and then the

[1:25:35] Voice 15: second item is let's release our quarterly results as they happen throughout the year

[1:25:39] Voice 15: i would let the committee know that the executive committee has the oversight functions for

[1:25:43] Voice 15: communications of islands trust and so um if there's a recommendation from this body that

[1:25:49] Voice 15: those activities take place it should be that financial planning committee recommend that

[1:25:53] Voice 15: that executive committee undertake these exercises.

[1:25:55] Voice 15: I will also let you know that we do,

[1:25:57] Voice 15: as Director Frater indicated,

[1:25:59] Voice 15: release, have a news release associated

[1:26:01] Voice 15: with Trust Council's approved budget in March.

[1:26:04] Voice 15: So if there is an additional news release

[1:26:06] Voice 15: around the draft numbers

[1:26:07] Voice 15: that financial planning committee has put forward today,

[1:26:09] Voice 15: there would, it would happen a month apart.

[1:26:11] Voice 15: So we'd be sending out one news release

[1:26:14] Voice 15: and then within a month have another one.

[1:26:17] Voice 15: So just for information sake.

[1:26:18] Voice 15: And Director Frater, if I've misspoke, please correct me.

[1:26:22] Trustee Bernardo: Trustee Evans um do you have a motion um uh the motion language uh ready for either one of these

[1:26:30] Trustee Bernardo: options you're talking about sure

[1:26:32] Voice 4: I can I can speak to the first one regarding the draft um

[1:26:36] Voice 4: budget I move that the draft 2023-24 budget

[1:26:44] Voice 8: be released via new news release in um actually

[1:26:54] Voice 8: to just leave it like that just very simple uh

[1:26:57] Voice 9: and um director

[1:27:02] Trustee Bernardo: mobs uh you're saying this is

[1:27:04] Trustee Bernardo: actually something that we would have to refer to executive committee to execute at their discretion

[1:27:11] Trustee Bernardo: is that

[1:27:11] Voice 15: they do have yeah

[1:27:13] Voice 15: i think director freighter's uh well positioned to answer

[1:27:15] Voice 15: she's got her hand up

[1:27:16] Trustee Bernardo: director freighter i

[1:27:18] Voice 14: think we can accommodate issuing a news release around

[1:27:20] Voice 14: the draft budget i'll have the cio let me know but i would think we could do a news release at

[1:27:24] Voice 14: at the request of this committee.

[1:27:25] Voice 14: The discussion about actuals and doing releases around that

[1:27:28] Voice 14: might be one to contemplate a bit more deeply,

[1:27:31] Voice 14: but certainly we could produce a draft one.

[1:27:33] Voice 14: If I have the floor chair,

[1:27:34] Voice 14: might I just add another comment?

[1:27:36] Trustee Bernardo: Go ahead.

[1:27:36] Voice 14: One of the purposes of releasing the draft budget

[1:27:39] Voice 14: is typically to invite public commentary.

[1:27:41] Voice 14: And of course that isn't really an avenue at this point

[1:27:44] Voice 14: because the council agenda will have been already prepared.

[1:27:47] Voice 14: So certainly I think if we did issue a news release,

[1:27:50] Voice 14: it would be to say, in this first year of the term,

[1:27:52] Voice 14: financial planning committee didn't proceed with public engagement because we don't want to get

[1:27:57] Voice 14: a slew of emails that we can't really provide to your next agenda at trust council so i would

[1:28:02] Voice 14: suggest if we if we're drafting it we're going to provide some cautionary language around you

[1:28:05] Voice 14: know please speak with your trustee

[1:28:06] Voice 9: we're not having

[1:28:08] Trustee Bernardo: an

[1:28:08] Voice 14: engagement process um so

[1:28:10] Trustee Bernardo: i just don't

[1:28:10] Trustee Bernardo: know how you

[1:28:12] Trustee Bernardo: execute that i think uh it would be wise of us to defer or to defer to your discretion

[1:28:18] Trustee Bernardo: and how the actual execution.

[1:28:20] Trustee Bernardo: And I understand from what Trustee Evans is saying

[1:28:22] Trustee Bernardo: that her, it's not consultation,

[1:28:25] Trustee Bernardo: it's transparency where she's coming from.

[1:28:27] Trustee Bernardo: And that's, and I also understand from Director Mobbs

[1:28:30] Trustee Bernardo: that the resolution will have, should,

[1:28:33] Trustee Bernardo: correct me please if I'm wrong,

[1:28:34] Trustee Bernardo: take the form of a recommendation to executive council

[1:28:36] Trustee Bernardo: that it do this.

[1:28:39] Voice 9: Is that right, Director Mobbs?

[1:28:43] Voice 13: They do meet on next Wednesday.

[1:28:45] Voice 13: So certainly that's when it would be contemplated.

[1:28:47] Voice 13: uh

[1:28:48] Trustee Bernardo: trustee evans are you fine with the idea of shaping this resolution with the view to

[1:28:53] Trustee Bernardo: recommending the executive committee uh request staff to issue a press release

[1:29:01] Trustee Bernardo: in

[1:29:01] Voice 4: lieu of public consultation right

[1:29:04] Trustee Bernardo: right yeah i

[1:29:06] Trustee Bernardo: see uh trustee bullen has her hand up

[1:29:08] Voice 1: uh just a quick one uh even though the agenda for trust council will be

[1:29:14] Voice 1: complete etc you could actually reference the fact that there's a public comment period

[1:29:19] Voice 1: and so at trust council which means that claire won't be overwhelmed with emails but

[1:29:26] Voice 1: trust council may have to listen to a bunch of two minutes but it's it's the public debate that's

[1:29:33] Voice 1: allowed at trust council so that could be referenced in the um in the news release

[1:29:39] Voice 1: thank you

[1:29:41] Trustee Bernardo: thank you so uh could we have that fashioned into a a resolution so it can be up

[1:29:50] Trustee Bernardo: there for the trustees

[1:29:51] Voice 9: to have a look at it

[1:30:00] Voice 9: Okay,

[1:30:01] Voice 4: so if I can just continue with the motion that I'm putting on the floor,

[1:30:06] Voice 4: that financial committee meeting requests the draft budget to be released.

[1:30:10] Voice 4: Sorry, I just have to move our faces so I can read it.

[1:30:16] Voice 4: Be released via a news release in lieu of public consultation.

[1:30:25] Trustee Bernardo: I think given what Director Mobb said, it has to say something or should say something like

[1:30:29] Trustee Bernardo: that financial planning committee request executive committee to authorize the release

[1:30:34] Trustee Bernardo: of the draft budget, blah, blah, blah.

[1:30:36] Voice 4: I thought for this one, she said it didn't need that we

[1:30:38] Voice 4: could, but please clarify.

[1:30:42] Voice 14: I feel generally comfortable working the chair, but if there's

[1:30:46] Voice 14: an executive committee member on the meeting today that wishes to speak out, otherwise I feel

[1:30:50] Voice 14: comfortable proceeding with the chair to craft a news release. But if executive committee members

[1:30:54] Voice 14: would like it to be there, I would suggest it be added. As I mentioned, the second resolution

[1:30:58] Voice 14: around them what

[1:31:00] Trustee Bernardo: i'm struggling with here director freighter is my understanding what i've heard is

[1:31:03] Trustee Bernardo: it's not actually within our authority to order or to require the release its executive committee

[1:31:09] Trustee Bernardo: has to do it and that we have to ask is that right and

[1:31:13] Voice 14: well in this way you have responsibility for

[1:31:15] Voice 14: public engagement on the budget okay i

[1:31:18] Voice 14: think in this it's a bit blurry on this one but i would

[1:31:20] Voice 14: think it's a it's i think it's appropriate for you to in lieu of public consultation to take this

[1:31:26] Voice 14: other path okay

[1:31:27] Trustee Bernardo: okay fine thank you so that resolution does the trick then all right so

[1:31:32] Trustee Bernardo: that's your motion trustee evans yes

[1:31:35] Voice 8: thank you do

[1:31:36] Voice 9: we have a seconder i

[1:31:40] Trustee Bernardo: see trustee bowen has her

[1:31:41] Trustee Bernardo: hand up yeah i second it do we have uh does any trustee wish to debate this further and by the

[1:31:48] Trustee Bernardo: way i want to make a note on the record that trustee yates who cannot attend she had to go

[1:31:53] Trustee Bernardo: to adopt another meeting uh has indicated that she wants um her opposition to this resolution

[1:31:59] Trustee Bernardo: uh on the record and i believe trustee peterson has had to absent himself nonetheless we still

[1:32:06] Trustee Bernardo: have a quorum so any further debate among the remaining uh trustees seeing none uh i uh i'm

[1:32:15] Trustee Bernardo: not going to call a vote please raise your hands if you approve i see uh

[1:32:25] Voice 3: six in favor chair okay

[1:32:28] Voice 3: Okay, thank you.

[1:32:28] Voice 3: That's seven.

[1:32:29] Voice 3: Seven in favour, and we have eight, I believe, so it's carries.

[1:32:33] Voice 3: Thank you.

[1:32:34] Trustee Bernardo: Please lower your hands.

[1:32:39] Trustee Bernardo: And the second motion that you seem to have had,

[1:32:43] Trustee Bernardo: Trustee Gates, or sorry, Trustee Evans in mind,

[1:32:47] Trustee Bernardo: was I believe that the Financial Planning Committee,

[1:32:50] Trustee Bernardo: and I think this is where the request business comes in,

[1:32:52] Trustee Bernardo: the Financial Planning Committee requested Executive Committee

[1:32:56] Trustee Bernardo: authorized the release of quarterly financial statement on an ongoing

[1:33:03] Voice 9: basis correct

[1:33:06] Voice 8: um um so

[1:33:10] Voice 9: by

[1:33:11] Trustee Bernardo: by press release of the press release uh of quarterly financial statements

[1:33:17] Voice 9: yeah um

[1:33:25] Voice 8: on an ongoing basis um once uh once once final approval

[1:33:32] Voice 8: approval has been obtained

[1:33:35] Voice 4: through trust council well you

[1:33:38] Trustee Bernardo: what you mean uh maybe there's a simpler

[1:33:43] Trustee Bernardo: way of putting that like news release of quarterly financial statements uh as approved or finalized

[1:33:52] Trustee Bernardo: or something like that like they get you know they get blessed you know how about how does this sound

[1:33:58] Trustee Bernardo: news release of quarterly financial statements as approved by trust or uh or did they approve

[1:34:06] Trustee Bernardo: I'm bumbling around you, I'm sorry.

[1:34:08] Voice 4: If you go that route, Chair Bernardo,

[1:34:10] Voice 4: then it reads that each quarterly statement

[1:34:13] Voice 4: must be approved for the news release,

[1:34:17] Voice 4: which is what

[1:34:18] Voice 4: I'm trying to avoid.

[1:34:19] Voice 4: I'm trying to set up something that is-

[1:34:21] Voice 4: I

[1:34:21] Trustee Bernardo: understand, I'll stop interfering.

[1:34:25] Trustee Bernardo: It's your resolution after all.

[1:34:28] Trustee Bernardo: I appreciate your

[1:34:29] Voice 4: assistance, I really do.

[1:34:32] Voice 4: Okay, so

[1:34:32] Voice 4: let me read through this one more time

[1:34:34] Voice 4: and see if i can clarify it a little bit better uh that financial planning committee requests

[1:34:40] Voice 4: executive committee authorized the release by news release of quarterly financial statements on an

[1:34:45] Voice 4: ongoing basis um once

[1:34:52] Voice 8: how

[1:34:57] Voice 9: does this sound on an ongoing basis upon um approval of the statement

[1:35:02] Voice 9: by trust council sure yeah so that captures what

[1:35:21] Trustee Bernardo: you want to say uh but before we move on along

[1:35:24] Trustee Bernardo: the lines that we have uh hands up so there might be some fruitful comments here um should we not

[1:35:29] Voice 4: get it seconded first so we can open it up for discussion and amendments as needed uh

[1:35:34] Trustee Bernardo: sure but

[1:35:36] Trustee Bernardo: i'm just you know uh staff might have some useful suggestions to tweak things so before we chain

[1:35:41] Trustee Bernardo: ourselves to a seconded motion i'm going to ask to hear from director mobs okay

[1:35:46] Voice 4: i can't see who's

[1:35:48] Voice 4: got their hands up thank you right

[1:35:49] Trustee Bernardo: of course and director mobs uh

[1:35:52] Voice 15: thanks chair um i think it would

[1:35:54] Voice 15: go to say that nothing that hasn't been approved uh would be released as a news release um anyway

[1:35:59] Voice 15: the statements are already in the public realm in the form of fpc agendas um this is my suggestion

[1:36:06] Voice 15: i'm not the communications expert but i would suggest that the financial statements themselves

[1:36:09] Voice 15: themselves are likely not all that readable for your average citizen.

[1:36:14] Voice 15: Quarterly financial results in a news

[1:36:16] Voice 15: release is probably easier with a link to the statements.

[1:36:19] Voice 15: But maybe that's just a nuance that can be addressed.

[1:36:23] Trustee Bernardo: What do you think about that, Trustee Evans?

[1:36:26] Trustee Bernardo: I'm hearing Director Mobs make a suggestion with respect to improving

[1:36:31] Trustee Bernardo: the transparency of what we're actually communicating.

[1:36:33] Trustee Bernardo: But of course, it's your resolution.

[1:36:34] Trustee Bernardo: resolution yes

[1:36:34] Voice 4: so i was i was asking um that the simplified budget results are the ones that be

[1:36:42] Voice 4: released and so if that's not being captured in here that is what i want captured so it would

[1:36:49] Trustee Bernardo: read authorize a release by or authorize the release by news release of quarterly financial

[1:36:53] Trustee Bernardo: results on an ongoing basis upon approval etc etc i see trustee luckham has his hand up

[1:37:04] Voice 10: Yeah, I've been really resisting making any further comments because it seems like there's

[1:37:10] Voice 10: an awful lot of detail here. However, I think one should consider, so as a preamble to my comment,

[1:37:20] Voice 10: one should consider that if we do too many press releases at any given point in time,

[1:37:24] Voice 10: nobody's going to read any of them or it's just going to be overwhelming.

[1:37:27] Voice 10: And so, Trust, at the conclusion of Council, highlights are published shortly after to advise the public what it is that has transpired.

[1:37:41] Voice 4: Point of order, point of order. Are we getting into discussion before this has been seconded?

[1:37:45] Voice 10: No, I'm making a recommendation for the motion before it's seconded.

[1:37:49] Voice 4: Thank you.

[1:37:50] Voice 4: I

[1:37:51] Voice 10: just want to be clear about what I'm saying.

[1:37:54] Voice 10: So there's a highlight from Trust Council that goes out regularly after the Trust Council meeting, and it would not be difficult to include in that highlights the quarterly financial results and a link has been suggested, so that there will only be one press release that goes out that encompasses all of the things that we want to report out, including the decisions of council.

[1:38:21] Voice 10: So just help, trying to help, that's all.

[1:38:24] Voice 4: no that's great um so uh so we can change that then to or to authorize the release of the

[1:38:33] Voice 4: quarterly financial results in the um what what did you call it trustee trust

[1:38:39] Voice 10: council highlights

[1:38:40] Voice 10: uh press release so

[1:38:45] Voice 9: hold on

[1:38:46] Voice 8: hold on and

[1:38:51] Voice 9: director freighter may be able to

[1:38:52] Voice 10: assist with the right

[1:38:53] Voice 10: name okay

[1:38:55] Voice 4: so that financial planning committee requests that the executive committee authorize

[1:38:59] Voice 4: the release of the quarterly financial results um

[1:39:08] Voice 8: i think the

[1:39:11] Trustee Bernardo: word you want to have is authorize

[1:39:13] Trustee Bernardo: the inclusion of the quarterly financial results in the trust council highlights released after

[1:39:20] Trustee Bernardo: every trust council meeting etc well in fact i think i think it would

[1:39:26] Voice 9: be after the after every

[1:39:28] Voice 9: trust council meeting yeah so

[1:39:36] Voice 8: in the trust council highlights news release on an ongoing basis yeah

[1:39:41] Voice 9: Yeah, and then we'd do it.

[1:39:45] Voice 9: Sorry, Chair,

[1:39:47] Voice 17: if I may.

[1:39:48] Voice 17: Yes.

[1:39:48] Voice 17: I'm not quite sure what the language is required here.

[1:39:53] Trustee Bernardo: Okay, well, from what I've heard, and it's up to Trustee Evans, of course, to sort of finalize this, but what I'm hearing is that financial planning committee requests that the executive committee authorize the inclusion of the quarterly financial results in the trust council highlights.

[1:40:09] Voice 9: News release.

[1:40:10] Trustee Bernardo: News release on an

[1:40:12] Trustee Bernardo: ongoing basis, period.

[1:40:14] Voice 9: did

[1:40:15] Trustee Bernardo: i cover trustee ellen's correct thank you all right uh that's up let's have a motion on

[1:40:21] Trustee Bernardo: that's your motion do we have a seconder for the motion yes

[1:40:26] Voice 1: i'll second it uh

[1:40:28] Trustee Bernardo: trustee bowen

[1:40:29] Trustee Bernardo: is seconding it uh does anybody want to debate this please show your hands i see trustee luckum

[1:40:35] Trustee Bernardo: you have your hand up you probably forgot you're right thank you uh any anybody want to have any

[1:40:42] Trustee Bernardo: for the debate on this uh let's put it up for votes

[1:40:46] Voice 9: all in favor raise your hands please yes

[1:40:55] Voice 9: he's seven in favor so that carries thank you the

[1:41:03] Trustee Bernardo: next item on the agenda electronic meetings and

[1:41:06] Trustee Bernardo: staff time uh something brought forward by denman island local trust council for information who

[1:41:14] Trustee Bernardo: will speak to this director

[1:41:16] Voice 15: of planning thank

[1:41:19] Voice 18: you mr chair i'll briefly i'll be as brief as i can

[1:41:22] Voice 18: This was forwarded to from the Denman Island LTC, and it was a request for them to investigate cost savings of having digital meetings.

[1:41:31] Voice 18: And no surprise, it saves money not to send staff to faraway meetings by not incurring travel times or other like in lieu of type costs.

[1:41:45] Voice 18: So that's what it says. I could dive into details if you want, but that's it's nuts and bolts.

[1:41:51] Trustee Bernardo: Thank you.

[1:41:51] Trustee Bernardo: It sounds like that's a piece of information or intelligence that should be used for future

[1:41:56] Trustee Bernardo: planning, but there's nothing for us to deal with that, I think, at this point.

[1:41:59] Trustee Bernardo: Thank you for that information.

[1:42:01] Trustee Bernardo: The next item, request from the Governance Committee.

[1:42:03] Trustee Bernardo: I will speak to that at the Governance Committee meeting last.

[1:42:07] Trustee Elliott: Jeremy, just on the last item, it occurs to me that this, is this something that could

[1:42:14] Trustee Elliott: be discussed by a regional planning committee in terms of distribution of resources, just

[1:42:20] Trustee Elliott: just in the larger picture, like not an immediate discussion, but how, you know,

[1:42:25] Trustee Elliott: whether chair and staff are traveling, this is something that I've wanted to look into myself,

[1:42:34] Trustee Elliott: sort of equitable distribution of resources. Are we getting serviced? Each of the trust areas

[1:42:41] Trustee Elliott: being serviced equitably and looking at overtime, which does have larger implications for

[1:42:47] Trustee Elliott: financial planning i don't think it's something for right now but is this a policy or a practice

[1:42:56] Trustee Elliott: discussion that regional planning committee we could refer to regional planning for discussion

[1:43:01] Trustee Bernardo: well what i'm you know i stand to be corrected but to me the information seems relevant to really

[1:43:07] Trustee Bernardo: just operational management and uh it's not really a policy thing it's really about how to

[1:43:15] Trustee Bernardo: efficiently deliver a thing that we're already delivering which is these meetings and perhaps

[1:43:21] Trustee Bernardo: this is a a management issue to be worked out between staff and executive committee

[1:43:25] Trustee Bernardo: it

[1:43:28] Voice 9: could be or am i missing something i'm

[1:43:33] Trustee Elliott: not too sure what i'm asking for it's but i think this is

[1:43:37] Trustee Elliott: an area for investigation i'm just not sure what what body cao

[1:43:41] Trustee Bernardo: i see the cao has uh has uh

[1:43:44] Trustee Bernardo: helpfully put his hand up uh he's gonna have the answer for us i think go

[1:43:50] Voice 9: ahead sir you're muted

[1:43:53] Voice 9: you're muted

[1:43:54] Trustee Elliott: cao i

[1:43:56] Voice 12: wasn't muted i was just pretending i was um no um executive committee's

[1:44:03] Voice 12: been incubating this and delivering the service for the last three years um i my recommendation

[1:44:08] Voice 12: is don't duplicate this if there's tendrils or ideas that should be developed um bring them up

[1:44:14] Voice 12: there and they can re-refer it out but um if you're asking for you know who's who's got it

[1:44:20] Voice 12: in their ballywick right now it is the executive committee they're the sponsors of the meeting

[1:44:23] Voice 12: administrator position that you've already tacitly moved ahead to trust council for discussion so i

[1:44:29] Voice 12: think they're on it um but they always look for good advice thanks so

[1:44:35] Trustee Bernardo: with that advice uh trustee

[1:44:37] Trustee Bernardo: elliot it looks like it's well within your power to uh to shake and move things to go in the

[1:44:42] Trustee Bernardo: the direction you want so i'm going to leave it at that uh if i may i'd like to return to item 8.2

[1:44:47] Trustee Bernardo: as i was about to say uh at the governance committee meeting last friday uh it was resolved

[1:44:54] Trustee Bernardo: that uh we we being islands trust but the committee has resolved uh to explore corporate

[1:45:04] Trustee Bernardo: planning and on that basis uh passed a resolution asking staff to provide an outline of what

[1:45:12] Trustee Bernardo: what a corporate planning process would look like.

[1:45:14] Trustee Bernardo: And I did email all of you with a bit more detail about that.

[1:45:17] Trustee Bernardo: I won't repeat myself.

[1:45:18] Trustee Bernardo: But the idea was not to develop content for a corporate plan,

[1:45:23] Trustee Bernardo: but to develop essentially an outline or strategy for developing a process for corporate planning

[1:45:31] Trustee Bernardo: and to work with the FPC along those lines.

[1:45:33] Trustee Bernardo: And to report back before the next or to report back at the next meeting of governance committee between now and then there are no meetings scheduled for FPC and also we need to have a mechanism in order to facilitate that cooperation that's been asked for by the governance committee.

[1:46:02] Trustee Bernardo: committee and I did send some resolutions along those lines if we could please have them on the

[1:46:08] Trustee Bernardo: screen

[1:46:09] Voice 9: okay thank you now

[1:46:23] Trustee Bernardo: I've actually the theory I'm my contemplation here is that we develop a

[1:46:30] Trustee Bernardo: working group of three people and it will work with staff to assist in that corporate planning

[1:46:39] Trustee Bernardo: I was asking for volunteers to various people

[1:46:44] Trustee Bernardo: and I see trustee Patrick and trustee Bowen

[1:46:47] Trustee Bernardo: have already indicated an interest in participating,

[1:46:50] Trustee Bernardo: but that doesn't exclude other people

[1:46:52] Trustee Bernardo: who are participating if they're interested.

[1:46:54] Trustee Bernardo: So the call for, and we may change the number of volunteers,

[1:46:57] Trustee Bernardo: but it seems to me three is a workable number,

[1:46:59] Trustee Bernardo: but it's up to this committee to decide.

[1:47:01] Trustee Bernardo: I see trustee Evans has her hand up.

[1:47:05] Trustee Bernardo: Yes.

[1:47:06] Trustee Bernardo: I

[1:47:06] Voice 4: was just going to say that I might be interested

[1:47:08] Voice 4: in volunteering for the community.

[1:47:10] Voice 4: this as well thank

[1:47:11] Trustee Bernardo: you do we have any other people

[1:47:13] Voice 9: who'd be interested in doing this work

[1:47:14] Voice 9: since there aren't

[1:47:21] Trustee Bernardo: uh i'm going to ask that this uh resolution um the first resolution be

[1:47:26] Trustee Bernardo: amended to read uh financial planning committee appoint uh trustees patrick

[1:47:34] Voice 9: boland and evans

[1:47:39] Voice 9: to serve as a working group to assist staff in outlining corporate planning process

[1:47:45] Trustee Bernardo: do

[1:47:45] Voice 9: we is there a need to have a debate on this item trustee evans you have your hand up sorry

[1:47:56] Voice 9: i've got problems with my hands at the moment okay all right uh thank you um trustee luckham

[1:48:05] Voice 10: i'm just trying to recall the conversation of the governance committee and but mostly asking

[1:48:10] Voice 10: what your expectation would be with respect to that work coming back to the fpc for some sort

[1:48:17] Voice 10: sort of approval that's yeah

[1:48:18] Trustee Bernardo: that's i'm going to get to that that's that'll be coming by the

[1:48:21] Trustee Bernardo: second resolution okay thank you but it does have to yeah in fact thank you for that i should have

[1:48:26] Trustee Bernardo: clarified that i mentioned an email but i should have repeated that which is that uh it has to be

[1:48:33] Trustee Bernardo: structured so that the work initially comes back to the fpc before it goes on to the

[1:48:38] Trustee Bernardo: governance committee and that's the idea behind all of this regular role um so uh any further

[1:48:46] Trustee Bernardo: debate or comment or i guess i should uh i'd make this motion i'm moving this that financial

[1:48:52] Trustee Bernardo: planning committee appoint trustees patrick boland evans to serve as a working group to assist staff

[1:48:57] Trustee Bernardo: in outlining corporate planning process may i have a seconder i see trustee patrick is seconding

[1:49:04] Trustee Bernardo: is there any further debate required on this motion may okay i'm putting up to vote those

[1:49:11] Voice 9: in favor please raise your hands uh seven and eight in favor so it carries thank you

[1:49:22] Trustee Bernardo: The second component of this is, as Trustee Leckham pointed out, is that there needs to

[1:49:29] Trustee Bernardo: be a comeback to us, the larger committee, on the work so we can basically receive it

[1:49:37] Trustee Bernardo: and consider it before it goes on to governance committee.

[1:49:42] Trustee Bernardo: And the strategy I'm contemplating here is we simply select a date in April that is before

[1:49:49] Trustee Bernardo: the time staff needs to report back to governance committee which is by no later than april 14th

[1:49:57] Trustee Bernardo: so it probably makes sense to have and uh i may be in the cao's hands here on timing but it makes

[1:50:05] Trustee Bernardo: sense to have uh the report back to the fpc to be probably not later than a week before the

[1:50:13] Trustee Bernardo: the report goes to general or governance uh committee so something like april 7th or some

[1:50:21] Trustee Bernardo: other date anybody's got any suggestions of what i would propose do we have any suggestions or

[1:50:26] Trustee Bernardo: comments along those lines about timing and i think it's a staff thing really more than anything

[1:50:29] Trustee Bernardo: else although i see trustee evans you have your hand up yeah

[1:50:33] Voice 4: so i would recommend either the fifth

[1:50:35] Voice 4: or the sixth the seventh is good friday and i'm sure that there may be people traveling on that

[1:50:40] Voice 4: day all

[1:50:41] Trustee Bernardo: right um i see a ceo please yeah

[1:50:47] Voice 12: a couple of a couple of things mr chair just understanding

[1:50:51] Voice 12: the sequence and the resourcing that's needed so that's a a meeting of fpc to do the work

[1:50:58] Voice 12: no or or to receive the work it

[1:51:02] Trustee Bernardo: is uh i should have read out the the draft to clarify uh it's

[1:51:07] Trustee Bernardo: that financial planning committee schedule a special meeting to be held virtually on

[1:51:11] Trustee Bernardo: april 5th i guess right at

[1:51:13] Trustee Bernardo: which the agenda will be limited to receiving and considering

[1:51:17] Trustee Bernardo: the working group and staff's joint report on the work conducted to date okay

[1:51:22] Voice 12: so that presumes

[1:51:23] Voice 12: before that there's other meetings of the working group of the subgroup yes right and that has some

[1:51:32] Voice 12: staffing resources associated with like staff's involved in some elements associated with that

[1:51:37] Voice 12: which have yet to be determined yes but okay correct

[1:51:41] Trustee Bernardo: me if i'm wrong about this but it seems

[1:51:43] Trustee Bernardo: to me that uh you know there's a you know the fine tuning of meetings and stuff like that i mean

[1:51:49] Trustee Bernardo: that's just a limit to how much we should be scheduling things i'm envisioning this as a

[1:51:54] Trustee Bernardo: working group that teams up with your people and together you figure out when you should be talking

[1:52:01] Trustee Bernardo: to each other and you know you work together you're like you're a part of a team and then

[1:52:06] Trustee Bernardo: the team comes back april 5th to fbc and then later april 14th to um and then the april 14th

[1:52:13] Trustee Bernardo: sorry staff reports to uh the governance committee so uh i'm hoping yes executable

[1:52:19] Trustee Bernardo: i

[1:52:22] Voice 12: think some version of that is executable

[1:52:25] Trustee Bernardo: good yeah so uh if we can change the language of this

[1:52:29] Trustee Bernardo: staff please to read virtually on april 5th

[1:52:33] Voice 9: april 5 and

[1:52:42] Trustee Bernardo: uh that is a helpful suggestion to add in

[1:52:44] Trustee Bernardo: in regards to a corporate planning process so let's keep that that's good so that's the motion

[1:52:50] Trustee Bernardo: I'm making. Do I need to read it out? Oops, I see hands up. Trustee Evans? No. CAO, you have your

[1:53:03] Trustee Bernardo: hand up? No. Okay, sorry. Trustee Patrick?

[1:53:08] Trustee Patrick: I'm going to be at the UBCM housing conference on

[1:53:12] Trustee Patrick: April 5th. I don't know what time of the day it ends, where I could

[1:53:17] Trustee Bernardo: listen in to the meeting.

[1:53:19] Trustee Bernardo: Okay, well, you need to be at the special meeting, since you're going to be on that thing.

[1:53:25] Trustee Bernardo: How about April 6th?

[1:53:27] Trustee Bernardo: Does that work for the volunteers?

[1:53:29] Trustee Bernardo: I see a thumbs up.

[1:53:31] Trustee Bernardo: So let's change that to April 6th.

[1:53:34] Trustee Bernardo: Okay, that's the motion that financial planning committee

[1:53:37] Trustee Bernardo: set schedule a special meeting to be held

[1:53:39] Trustee Bernardo: virtually on April 6th, 2023,

[1:53:41] Trustee Bernardo: at which the agenda will be limited to receiving

[1:53:43] Trustee Bernardo: and considering working group and staff joint report

[1:53:46] Trustee Bernardo: on the work conducted today

[1:53:47] Trustee Bernardo: in regards to a corporate planning process.

[1:53:49] Trustee Bernardo: May I have a seconder?

[1:53:53] Trustee Bernardo: Trustee Boland is seconding the matter.

[1:53:55] Trustee Bernardo: matter i see director mobs has her hand up

[1:54:00] Voice 15: just to throw a wrench and things uh if my presence

[1:54:04] Voice 15: is desired the sixth is not workable for me the

[1:54:10] Trustee Bernardo: work the substantive work should be done by then

[1:54:12] Trustee Bernardo: so um uh we always need you but we can survive without you at this one i think

[1:54:20] Trustee Bernardo: sounds good to

[1:54:21] Voice 15: me thank

[1:54:23] Trustee Bernardo: you any further debate by the trustees on this issue

[1:54:26] Trustee Bernardo: you i'm

[1:54:28] Voice 9: calling a vote please raise your hands if you approve direct mouse can you lower yours

[1:54:36] Voice 9: so that's aid in favor thank you yeah it passes okay thank you all right moving on to new business

[1:54:49] Voice 9: um let's say there isn't any moving on to the work program

[1:54:56] Trustee Bernardo: do we really have to go through this again no

[1:54:59] Voice 11: let's

[1:55:00] Trustee Bernardo: not the information okay that's a that's

[1:55:03] Trustee Bernardo: just an update that'll end up going to trust council and um that can be discussed if people

[1:55:09] Trustee Bernardo: are interested in that at that time uh next meeting uh have we not already booked all these

[1:55:17] Trustee Bernardo: meetings or resolved on these or do we have to do it at this meeting it's

[1:55:22] Voice 15: there for information

[1:55:22] Voice 15: chair

[1:55:22] Trustee Bernardo: okay all right uh that's for you guys to remember to put that in your calendars

[1:55:28] Trustee Bernardo: uh can

[1:55:28] Voice 10: i just uh may i just ask a question here yes um are you really meeting with the audit

[1:55:35] Voice 10: committee a second time you've just met with the audit committee uh

[1:55:40] Voice 15: so we'll be meeting with the

[1:55:41] Voice 15: audit committee to review the findings of the audit the audit will be completed by that oh i

[1:55:46] Voice 10: say i understand sorry not being involved in that uh it's just a 10 30 state start is kind of late

[1:55:52] Voice 10: it'd be nice to start a little earlier but if that's the case then that's the case

[1:55:57] Voice 10: thank you did

[1:55:59] Voice 1: the the audit committee was to meet for an hour actually didn't we resolve that

[1:56:03] Voice 1: that. Am I wrong? Yes. No, you did. But

[1:56:07] Trustee Bernardo: we changed that by moving the time back to the

[1:56:11] Trustee Bernardo: audit committee meeting. We'll actually start at 9.

[1:56:13] Voice 1: Yeah. So that just what's there. Okay. That's

[1:56:15] Voice 1: fine. No problem. So,

[1:56:16] Trustee Bernardo: I mean, you know, in a perfect world that would have said 9.30 AM,

[1:56:20] Trustee Bernardo: but whatever, I guess, you know, it's just a little thing. Well, thank

[1:56:24] Trustee Bernardo: you for that.

[1:56:25] Trustee Bernardo: Thank you. Thank you for that. Let's see. Closed meeting. There's no need for it. I don't think

[1:56:31] Trustee Bernardo: unless somebody has something that they believe needs that uh i don't see anybody jumping up and

[1:56:36] Trustee Bernardo: down for that so we don't need to rise and report and what do you know it's 257 we're done all right

[1:56:44] Trustee Bernardo: uh the meeting is welcome thank you everybody well

[1:56:49] Voice 9: done uh thank you everybody and in particular um