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THE OAKVILLE BEAVER A5Wednesdsay May 26, 1999 Recent rains not enough to stop watering restrictions By Howard Mozel OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF Long weekend rain notwithstanding, Hal ton Region is once again implementing mandatory lawn watering restrictions. According to Planning and Public Works, sum­ mer water use can increase by a full 50% - most of this for lawns and gardens. To that end, the depart­ ment will be promoting an odd/even system to reduce peaks in water demand during June, July and August. Properties with even numbered addresses can water on even calendar days. Those with odd num­ bered addresses can water on odd calendar days. Townhouses will water according to unit num­ bers, not the address of the complex. Apartment buildings will follow the system based on the build­ ing number only. Note that private wells and surface water from ponds and streams are excluded from the program, which will be enforced by Planning and Public Works staff. Although a maximum $2,000 fine can be assessed for violators, the department is stressing the co-operation of citizens to ensure this water conservation effort is successful. Excessive water demand can strain the capacity of water supply and affect water reservoir storage. The program includes: all residential, commer­ cial and industrial properties; all municipal proper­ ties such as schools and parks; golf courses using municipal water. The program does not include: car washing; hand watering by can; spray nozzles; newly placed sod; lawns treated with pesticides, herbicides or fer­ tilizer. The average lawn watering uses approximately 360 gallons of water in half an hour. If all of the approximately 45,000 homes in Oakville watered on the same day, about 16.2 million gallons of water would be used. Oakville boaters are also being urged to exercise caution this summer, thanks to lower than normal water levels in the lake. While all the Great Lakes have shown a decline, Lake Ontario has experienced the biggest drop in water levels due to dry conditions and the slow snow melt which allowed much of the meltwater to evaporate or be absorbed into the ground. One of the greatest problems, of course, is the risk of keels and propellers catching on rocks, shoals and other obstructions normally covered by sufficient water for safe passage. Recreational boaters may have trouble accessing marinas up-river from the lake. Private docks may have to be extended or even relocated. Low levels could also pose problems for boat access to islands. According to Environment Canada, Ontario has recorded higher than usual temperatures for 17 months straight, with last year being the warmest on record. This year, during the first two weeks of May, the province has seen barely 15% of the amount of rain traditionally received. O ak v ille T w a rn s a b o u t te le m a r k e in g c la im s The YMCA of Oakville has issued an alert regarding a telemarketing campaign for "Stop 88" a women's shelter stated by the callers to be affili­ ated with the Y. "Stop 88" and the current telemarketing cam­ paign may be affiliated with a Y, but not the YMCA of Oakville. The YMCA of Oakville is not engaged in tele­ marketing, nor has it authorized any persons to raise funds on its behalf by means of telemarket­ ing. Anyone with questions about the validity of telephone solicitations reputedly on behalf of the YMCA of Oakville or any organization affiliated with it, should contact Lisa Dodd at the YMCA of Oakville at (905) 845-3417 or Sgt. Frank Phillips of the Halton Regional Police Service at (905) 878-5511. Report says new staff would cost million (Continued from page 1) The report also recommends the cre­ ation of new positions including: four new staff sergeants, two additional inspectors, one Scenes of Crime Officer (a pilot project) and three officers for a Milton Police Reporting Centre. The annualized cost of these staffing additions (excluding percentage increas­ es in salary and benefits) is $1.8 million. In 1998, the HRPS budget was $43,500,000, with salaries and benefits accounting for approximately 84% of that. The HRPS Board recently approved a $45,921,000 1999 budget forecast, or 5.6% over last year. A total of $403,000 has already been budgeted to hire the 24 constables fur­ ther to the provincial Community Policing Program. HRPS currently employs 550 person­ nel, with 411 uniformed officers and 144 civilian staff. While the report deals with internal HRPS practices such as planning, goal setting and the fine-tuning of these ini­ tiatives, the majority of the document grapples with front-line policing. (The HRPS patrol function occupies approxi­ mately 60% of personnel.) Other aspects to the report include enhancing public service by deploying officers and other staff in a "direct ser­ vice position." The document also calls for a detailed review of calls for service and a needs analysis to determine the require­ ments of the K-9 and Tactical and Rescue Units; seeking continued outside funding for such programs as DARE and expanding the Victim Services Unit. According to the consultants, police have traditionally relied on police-to- public ratios to determine resource lev­ els, something which the report says is an "inadequate measure of service needs." The report originated over Halton Regional Council's concern that using police-to-public ratios would lead to "prohibitive increases" in the police budget. Halton Region has a projected population growth of 2% to 3% per year Family Coalition Party would By A drian R ate lle FAMILY COALITION PARTY CANDIDATE Is it any wonder that our taxes are so high, when one person in three is either working for the government, a government agency, board or commis­ sion, or is providing services to one of the above? The fact is that individuals and fam­ ilies in Ontario are taxed far more than the value of services that they receive from government. Take home pay rose in real terms (i.e., factoring in inflation) from the 1950s, to peak in 1973. From then on, we have seen a steady decline in fami­ lies' net income, to the point where the average Ontario family today earns about the same as in 1959. The prima- N D P says fa ire r ta x sy s te m n e e d e d (Continued from page 3) absurdity. The reason why it is so unfair is because wealthier people simply have so much more to gain from a 30% cut in their income taxes than someone making only $20,000 a year. Mike Harris does not seem to men­ tion the other increases in taxes he has implemented over his term as premier. Even the right-wing Fraser Institute admitted that property taxes increased 16% in Ontario from 1995 to 1998. Tuition fees for college and university students went up by an incredible 60%, and a $2 user fee was slapped on senior citizens every time they needed to buy drugs for their illnesses. All this, along with the new co-payment fees in healthcare (especially long-term and homecare), and user fees for communi­ ty services has, in fact, taken more money out of the pockets of working families. The Ontario Alternative Budget Working Group has shown that the average Ontario family will save $738 as a result of the Harris tax cut in 1999, but they will also have to pay out $766 in increased user fees, property tax hikes and other costs. Only when you move in the wealthiest 25% of family incomes does the tax cut finally out­ weigh the offsetting cost increases. And this already at a time when the gap between the rich and the working class is widening at a rapid pace. What Ontario needs is a fair and progressive taxation system where cor­ porations and the very rich pay their fair share. Unlike the Liberals, only the NDP will reverse the tax cut on those who benefit from it the most - the wealthiest 6% who receive 25% of it - and put this additional $ 1,5-billion back into healthcare, education, protection of the environment, housing, and our communities where it can do the most good for the most people. to 2016. If resources increased in paral­ lel with population, the HRPS budget could double about every 10 years. The consultant's efforts soon expand­ ed, however, to include an assessment of the use of current human resources, as well as the effectiveness and efficiency of HRPS programs and approaches. The idea, say the consultants, was to determine how effectively the HRPS was using current personnel in conjunc­ tion with its review of how many other staff were required. The consultants then interviewed civilian and uniformed HRPS members, Police board members, regional coun­ cillors, other law enforcement agencies and the public. Public surveys were also conducted. A preliminary report was reviewed by senior HRPS managers and board members earlier this month and their views incorporated into the final report. According to the report, calls for ser­ vice have been declining since 1990 with last year's total approximately equal to 1985's level. Clearance rates within the HRPS average 42.8% of occurrences, better than the national average. The HRPS, says the report, is "below the norm in policing cost, has a favourable clearance rate, is not plagued by significant crime problems and is held in high regard by the public which it serves." reduce PST by 2% ry reason for this is - (big surprise here) - taxation. Our party leader, Giuseppe Gori, has devised a method of demonstrating the variable return on our tax dollars. It is called the STING Curve, for Society's Total Investment in Government, and it shows that society benefits in moving from a point of "no programs / no taxes" to the optimum point, where we get the highest rate of return on our tax investment. From then on, however, creating more pro­ grams and spending more taxpayers' money actually creates a problem, as all of society has to work harder to sup­ port government programs that add less and less value to that society. Of course, the cost to society can be measured in more than just dollars. Education, Health Care and Welfare programs end up being squeezed to the breaking point as a government tries to be all things to all people. We are now at the point where the interest paid annually on Ontario's public debt is $9.1 Billion. This figure approaches the revenue from the PST. The Family Coalition Party believes that by getting our financial house in order, we can decrease the PST by 2% per year, eliminating it within four years. Ontario needs this kind of tax reduction to be competitive as a place to live and do business. We would require government to reduce its deficit each year by at least 20%. Failing that, the Premier must call an election. We would review non-governmental agen­ cies receiving public funding, eliminat­ ing that funding where possible. The FCP also advocates the removal of inter-provincial trade barri­ ers. By eliminating non-essential gov­ ernment spending, eliminating the deficit and eventually the provincial debt, and lowering taxes, the FCP will put more money in the hands of Ontario families and make Ontario a better place in which to live. Tories incompetent on tax issues (Continued from page 3) Toronto, the present system will always penalize Oakville. Under the Tories' property tax plan, Oakville taxpayers will routinely pay dispropor­ tionate taxes when compared to the rest of the Region. The Town of Oakville Council and I have gone on record publicly opposing market- based systems on many occasions. The Mike Harris plan also introduced tax pooling, whereby, property tax dollars paid by Oakville taxpayers are sent to Toronto to pay for social assistance and social housing costs. This costs Oakville taxpayers another $ 16-million per year. The incompetence of the Mike Harris gov­ ernment on taxation issues was never more evi­ dent than when it had to go back to the drawing board seven times to introduce a single tax bill. This caused unnecessary expense to taxpayers when municipalities had to issue and reissue tax bills. During this period, the president of the Oakville Chamber of Commerce expressed pub­ licly that they had a "crisis of confidence" in the Mike Harris government. The Association of Municipal Clerks and Treasurers also stated, 'This government in its haste is making legisla­ tion by the seat of its pants, without proper thought or planning." People sometimes forget that the property tax increases are paid for in after-tax dollars, while income tax is calculated on gross income. Simply stated, a person in the 40% tax bracket would need to earn approximate­ ly $1,600 to pay a property tax increase of $1,000. Despite promises to Oakville and other municipalities, the tax shifts have not been revenue neutral; people are simply paying a lot more for government services under Mike Harris. Every red cent of the Mike Harris govern­ ment tax cut is borrowed. In order to make him­ self look good, this premier is prepared to saddle this province with more debt. When elected, I will ensure: • a balanced budget • no tax increases • investment in healthcare and education • tax cuts with real money as the economy grows. W arehouse 3 a SAVEs80% T h e M ik a s a W a re h o u s e S a le D o n 't m i s s i t ! Featuring selected C A y ■ ^ discontinued and J H d . , n_c*t Suggested Retail Prices surplus lines o f Mikasa d in n erw are, crystal, gift-ware and flatw are. Choose from hundreds o f items - all at fantastic savings! • No dealers please • Cash, Visa, MasterCard, Interac (No cheques) • All Sales Final • No refunds or exchanges 5 DAYS ONLY! 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S t r o n g L e a d e r s h i p fo r a S t r o n g O n t a r i o Ontario [ 1 - 8 0 0 - 9 0 3 - M I K E w w w . M i k e H a r r i s P C . c o m w w w . t e d c h u d l e i q h . c o m O C a r r 9 C h u d l e i g h Authorized by the CFO for the Gary Carr Campaign Authorized by the CFO for the Ted Chudleigh Campaign http://www.MikeHarrisPC.comwww.tedchudleiqh.com