If Halifax residents want the rules around election campaign finances, they have June to speak up about it.
The municipal government is inviting people to provide feedback to help shape a new bylaw.
“There are not too many stringent rules on election campaign finance in the Municipal Elections Act, and so we’re starting at square one,” municipal clerk Kevin Arjoon said Wednesday.
He’s part of a team that’s organizing four public consultation meetings on the matter.
Work on the new bylaw started more than a year ago but was delayed because the rules would have potentially been introduced a month before the election — too late to have made a difference at that point, Arjoon said.
The project focuses on a number of matters, such as who can contribute and how much people can contribute in total.
Feedback on other areas is welcome too, Arjoon said.
READ MORE: Halifax getting the go-ahead for election finance rules
The data will be documented by a third-party facilitator and posted on the Shape Your City website.
“We really want to work with the public to understand what their values and thoughts are on what does election campaign finance accountability mean,” Arjoon said.
The inaugural meeting was held on Wednesday in the Harbour East Community Council Gathering Place in Dartmouth between 6:30 p.m. and 9 p.m.
“No one should be able to contribute in a municipal election more than $100, period,” Michael Marshall, an official agent for the Green Party of Nova Scotia, said.
“That’s not $100 per candidate, that’s $100 — spread it as you will. Take the money out of the municipal elections, and force the candidates to get back to door-to-door canvassing, actually meeting the voters, and maybe the turnout would come up as well.”
He said Halifax election campaign money needs to be regulated like it is at the federal and provincial levels.
One hour into the meeting, Marshall was one of four people who showed up for it.
“People are invited, but they don’t want to come. It’s too boring,” he said.
The reason, he said, was because there was no controversial bylaw put forward, and the meeting allowed for open-ended responses.
Feedback will be collected until the end of the month. Meetings are scheduled for the next two weeks on the following dates:
- June 12: 6-8 p.m. at the Old School Community Gardening Place at 7962 Highway 7 in Musquodoboit Harbour
- June 14: 6:30-9 p.m. at Halifax Hall in Halifax City Hall at 1841 Argyle St.
- June 22: 6:30-9 p.m. at the Bedford-Hammonds Plains Community Centre at 202 Innovation Dr. in Bedford
The aim is to submit a staff report with an attached draft bylaw by the end of the year, Arjoon said.
Comments