Supervisor appointed to oversee RM of McKillop after tax issues

A supervisor has been appointed to oversee the Rural Municipality of McKillop for the next year after ratepayer outcry over how the RM has been running.

In August ratepayers told Global News that some of their property tax assessment had more than doubled. This included a base tax of $850 and a new $250 garbage levy.

The report says the high-level evaluation found no documents that provided an explanation or basis for these mill rate decisions.

Government Relations Minister Warren Kaeding ordered an inspection of the RM on Aug. 22. The province received the report on Sept. 15. Now, retired RM administrator Vern Palmer will oversee the RM’s operations until Dec. 31, 2019.

READ MORE: Saskatchewan government investigating R.M. of McKillop

“Mr. Palmer brings 35 years of municipal experience and has a strong hands-on familiarity with the management and operation of RMs,” Kaeding said.

“What we’re asking Mr. Palmer to do is provide guidance to the RM in their decision making. Like I said, they’re going to be facing an election coming up. They’ve got some questions being asked, some petitions being presented to them that they have to take actions on.”

Ratepayers in the RM will vote on three council seats and two referendums on Oct. 24. The two referendum questions concern redrawing voting lines and exploring options to allow hamlets to self-govern and tax.

The RM of McKillop Reeve Howard Arndt said he thinks these referendums will help address underlying problems in the RM, this includes tensions between certain groups of rural residents and resort community ratepayers.

“There’s no secret in the fact that there have been problems in council and the operations in council for many, many years. Even before I came on board, and that has not changed,” Arndt said, who was elected in late 2016.

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The report makes note of “considerable dysfunction” in the RMs council and trying to meet the expectations of ratepayers.

Additionally, the report states no factual evidence of fraud, theft or misappropriation of funds were discovered in the the inspection and interviews.

“The whole process I’m very, very happy with. There were a lot of things that had been said and spread around but this in my mind puts them to bed completely; especially around the issues of any financial misdoings,” Arndt said.

The report recommends that Palmer begin his work on October 1, and remain in place until the end of 2019.

This fills one of the key recommendations brought forward by the inspector.

The report also recommends that the RM complete both a financial and management audit, follow through with a boundary alteration referendum, and work with residents of Sundale – an unorganized hamlet in the RM – on a new utility rate bylaw.

In addition to financial and management audits, the report indicates Revenue Canada informed the RM they too would be conducting an audit. That audit was scheduled to take place in the week of Sept. 16.

The RM of McKillop occupies the southern portion of Last Mountain Lake’s eastern shore, including Rowan’s Ravine Provincial Park plus a number of resort villages and townships.