Many people are not aware that Saint John contributes a disproportionate share of taxes to the province. Often when we read of an Atcon bailout or of millions of dollars in "Economic Development" money being sent to other parts of NB - the lion’s share of that money is being sucked out of Saint John.
The Equal Opportunity Act has - in the long term – disadvantaged the urban areas of the province in favour of unsustainable areas with multi-generational economic subsidies to pay for it. To understand our current challenges we need to know how many dollars are sent to Fredericton that don't come back? Perhaps the most direct route is to ask the question "how much provincial property tax is taken from SJ, versus the annual 'un-conditional grant' rec'd by the City". The so-called grants, are the vehicle by which this "provincial property tax" is re-distributed by the Province. Help in understanding this financial maneuvering would be a good undertaking for an elected provincial member locally, if he/she really wanted to help constituents understand what is happening.
Who among our provincial representatives has their eye on the big picture? It's time to remind ourselves and our elected reps at all government levels that there's only one taxpayer here. Why in the hell aren't our MLAs adding something during this intense time of service reductions, pension concerns and budget discussions? It is a well established fact that in New Brunswick, the provincial government has very significant control of municipal government finances. We NEED leadership and co-operation here. Where are Margaret-Ann Blaney, Blaine Higgs, Carl Killen, Trevor Holder, Glen Tait, Dorothy Sheppard, Jim Parrot, on this? They have all been virtually absent from the public debate on Saint John City challenges the past month.
We live with a property taxation system that sucks wealth out of this community and then leaves it to fight among itself to deal with the inadequacy of the situation. The city and its people get beat up by the system and by each other even though we produce the majority of the wealth that supports the rest of the province. This situation also stands in the way of our desire for a stronger URBAN agenda for our future. There is a direct conflict between these two issues; wealth re-distribution to rural areas at the expense of stronger investment in wealth producing and efficient URBAN communities like Saint John. Which politicians are connecting the dots and showing leadership? The days of political reactionary ways must be replaced by visionary leadership if we ever hope to realize our dreams.
