Bill 43: GENERAL
Bill 43, called the Greater Vancouver Transportation Authority Amendment Act (GVTAA), will establish a new law called the South Coast British Columbia Transportation Authority Act (SCBCTAA)
The Organization shall be called the South Coast British Columbia Transportation Authority
The term of office of the current Board members will expire December 31, 2007 [S. 178 of SCBCTAA]
The Board of the Authority shall consist of 9 individuals [S. 177 of SCBCTAA]
There shall be a Mayors' Council with limited powers [S. 208 of the SCBCTAA]
The Authority shall have expanded powers to expropriate land, including that which is not immediately required for a specific project [S. 8 of GVTAAA]
The Authority shall have all rights, powers and advantages over busways, defined as bus-only-ways, in addition to railways, that go through municipalities [S. 8 of GVTAAA]
The Authority shall no longer expand services into neighbouring municipalities by agreement [S. 8(b) of GVTAAA]
Screening Panel
The 9 directors shall be chosen by the Mayors' Council from a list of 15 candidates selected by a Screening Panel consisting of:
- One appointed by the minister
- One by the Mayors' Council
- One by the council of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of British Columbia (which have donated $7172 to BC Liberals since 1999)
- One by the Board of Directors of the Vancouver Board of Trade
- One by the Greater Vancouver Gateway Council [S. 31 of Amendment Act, S. 172 of SCBCTAA]
The 2007 Screening Panel, which was established without legal authority, is retroactively made legal. Its members currently include Graham Clarke (Minister's appointee), Mike Harcourt (Regional Mayors' appointee), Hugh Lindsay (Institute of Chartered Accountants' appointee), Dave Park (VBT's appointee), and R.V. Wilds (Greater Vancouver Gateway Council's appointee) There is no legislative requirement that the 2007 Screening Panel select potential directors based on their relevant skill and experience (S. 177, 180 of SCBCTAA) The Screening Panel must select subsequent nominees based on the following criteria:
- Nominees are qualified individuals who hold the skills and experience needed to oversee the operation of the authority in an efficient and cost effective manner
The Screening Panel may select subsequent sets of nominees based on the criteria set by the Board. The mayors will have no input into what the skills and experience requirements of the directors shall be. [S. 185 of SCBCTAA...etc]
There is no requirement that this panel be whole (i.e. include a representative of the mayors) to make the screenings [S.172.3]
The Screening Panel will be paid and supplied with $50,000 per year to run the meetings [S. 174.1(b)]
Each member of the Screening Panel will be paid an honorarium of $5000 or however much the Board decides by resolution [S. 174.3]
The Screening Panel will recommend the levels of compensation for the Board, including the various levels for each member depending on their duties [S. 176, S. 182]
After supplying a list of nominees before the end of 2007 the Screening Panel is disestablished [S. 176.4]
Selection of Directors
Each mayor, regardless of population, has one vote in the selection of the directors from the list (S.177.2, S. 179.3]
The mayors must select the directors for 2008 by December 31 (Section 177)
For subsequent years the Council of Mayors will have to select the directors from the list of 15 by November 1, 45 days after the Screening Panel presents them on September 15 [S. 177.1].
The initial appointment process will see 9 directors appointed at once, staggered so that 3 are appointed for three years, 3 for two years, and 3 for one year [S. 177.1].
Subsequent to this, the mayors choose 3 from a list of 5 by November 1 of each year for three year terms, with consecutive terms not to exceed 6 years [S.179.1].
If the mayors do not agree on any of the nominees, the nominees will be appointed anyway in accordance with how they are ranked on the list. [S.177, S.179.4]
Termination of Directors
The Board may remove one of its members by resolution [S. 187]
There is no provision allowing the Council of Mayors to terminate a director
Duties of Directors
The Board shall select its own CEO [S. 190]
The Board shall have all effective operational and management powers, including that to delegate duties to:
- Subsidiaries
- Employees, and
- Contractors [S. 190.3]
Conflict of Interest restrictions for directors will have no independent officer to enforce and no penalties to be incurred [S. 183]
Directors shall set the guidelines and requirements for their own jobs in the Authority's articles [S. 185]
The Board shall reimburse directors for legal costs incurred in a criminal proceeding if the Board decides there are "reasonable grounds for believing that the person's conduct was lawful" [S. 189]
The Board may establish committees of the board that will have the power of the Board invested in it [S. 190]
Mayors' Council
The Mayors' Council must appoint one of their number as chair and shall vote on any regional transportation matter with a vote weighted for population [S. 211]
The Mayors' Council will meet not less than 4 times annually [S. 210]
The Authority must fund the Mayors' Council with 0.02 percent of the Authority's gross revenue in the past year- with a budget of $840 million last year, this will amount to $168,000. [S. 213.3]
The Mayors' Council shall vote on supplemental plans (described below) on or before October 31 [S. 204]
There is no provision stating that this vote will be weighted by population, although it is assumed section 211 of the SCBCTA will apply in this case.
Commissioner
The Mayors' Council shall appoint a qualified individual as a commissioner for a term of six years [S. 215-216]
For the purposes of selecting or terminating the commissioner, each mayor will have one vote [S. 217]
There shall be conflict of interest rules but no independent commissioner to ensure compliance or lay penalties [S. 220]
The Commissioner shall have the authority to approve additional fare increases [S. 223]
The Commissioner shall decide whether or not to grant additional fares based on the following criteria:
- It is reasonable to achieve the financial goals of the strategic plan
- It maintains the financial stability of the Authority [S. 223]
There is no provision requiring transit fares be reasonable with respect to achieving transit ridership targets
The Board may override the Commissioner and set higher fares anyway if they have a two-thirds majority and if they determine an increase is necessary to meet debt obligations [S. 223.11]
The Commissioner shall have the authority to set up a review process to examine the Board's sale of TransLink properties [S. 226]
The Commissioner may authorize inspectors to examine the Board's failure to provide a report or record [S. 227]
The Commissioner shall provide a review of the supplemental plans by September 1 to determine if they comply with the revenue and expenditure estimates [S. 203]
Long Term Strategy
The Board will establish the 30-Year provincial plan [S. 193]
There is no provision requiring the Mayors' Council to approve the 30-Year plan
In preparing a long term strategy, the Authority must consider:
- Regional land use objectives,
- Provincial and regional environmental objectives, including air quality and greenhouse gas emission reduction objectives, and
- Anticipated population growth in, and economic development of, the transportation service region. [S. 193.3]
There is no requirement that the Authority consult with the GVRD, the public, local governments or the province in formulating its first long term plan, although this requirement exists for subsequent plans [S. 193.5]
Failure to consult does not invalidate long term strategy [S. 193.7]
Strategic Plans
The Authority shall create a 10-year Base Plan, to be updated every year in accordance with revenue and expenditures identified in the 30 year plan [S. 194, S. 202]
In addition to the Base Plan, the Authority shall develop one or more supplemental plans describing variations to the base plan including their financial implications [S. 200]
These plans shall be made in accordance with:
- Regional growth strategy,
- Provincial and regional environmental objectives, including air quality and greenhouse gas emission reduction objectives,
- Anticipated population growth in, and economic development of, the transportation service region, and
- The Authority's current long term strategy [S. 201].
The plans are to be developed by August 1 of each year, are to be reviewed by the Commissioner by September 1, and must be approved by the Council of Mayors by November 1 [S. 202]
If the Mayors' Council cannot decide on a supplement, the base plan shall be adopted as the strategic plan [S. 206]
There is no provision stating that the Mayors' Council, in voting on the base and supplemental plans, will use a weighted vote, although it is assumed section 211 of the SCBCTA will apply in this case.
Financing
The Authority shall be empowered to levy additional property taxes equal to $18 million to compensate for loss of revenue from parking stall tax [S. 17 of GVTAAA]
The Authority may increase the fuel tax by no more than 3 cents per litre, and only if it is needed for one third of the needed revenue (thereby ensuring an equal increase in property taxes and fares] [S. 18 of GVTAAA]
The Authority shall have the power to increase property taxes by no more than 3 percent per year [S. 196 of SCBCTAA]
The Authority shall not increase property taxes if assessments increase [S. 196 of SCBCTAA]
The Authority shall levy tolls according to its bylaws [S. 199 of SCBCTAA]
The Authority shall increase fares with or without approval of Commissioner [S. 223.11 of SCBCTAA]