Being Coy Isn’t Outright Lying, But Coy Isn’t Open and Transparent Either
Being coy is far from being open and transparent, but at least it’s not outright lying. So when City Council directed its staff to send an expression of interest to outsource its library and join the VIRL service, it should have explained this at the time (which was over a year ago).
At minimum, City Council should have explained this by the time that residents were publicly asking for details on the City’s intentions for the local library, following the news from an accidental leak that alerted residents to concerns over the future control of our municipal library.
Residents asked: Are you planning to outsource the library? A straightforward answer from City Council would have been: Yes, and we’ve already sent a written expression of interest to the Vancouver Island Regional Library (VIRL). We did this over a year ago, we voted to do this in secret (presumably it was by an in-camera vote held before September 12, 2023), and now we’re waiting for them to say yes to our invitation. If they say yes, then we’ll decide what to do next.
Instead, City Councillors said the reverse to concerned residents, implying that it was up to VIRL to make the first move and until then, there was nothing to do but wait and keep an open mind. City Councillors even questioned the basis for any concern, asserting that there was nothing at all to be concerned about and suggesting that the reputation of those raising concerns may be damaged by even asking for a public clarification on the matter.
But a decision by the City of Prince Rupert on outsourcing was already made, meaning that there was no doubt that this would happen, because it had happened already. Raising doubts about something that City Council had already done obscured how serious City Council was on pushing forward with its plans to fire the library board and outsource the library.
To be clear: The decision to start the outsourcing process was initiated when the City sent a letter to the Vancouver Island Regional Library (VIRL) to “express the City of Prince Rupert’s interest in joining the VIRL service.” We know this now, thanks to a freedom of information request sent to VIRL by the teachers’ union (of which I am a member).
Not disclosing its expression of interest to VIRL, and City Council’s approval of it (presumably by an in-camera vote at a meeting prior to September 12, 2023), does not rise to the level of outright lying, as omitting the truth can be done without lying.
However, leaving out the fact that the City had already formally reached out to VIRL, with a written expression of interest sent over a year ago, was at least a very coy response to residents’ concerns and questions about the City’s plans to outsource the library. A more truthful answer would have been better.
Even If You Don’t Care About the Library, This Matters to Everyone in the City
Even if you don’t care about the library or local control of it, the issue of transparency over major decisions around core city services should matter to you. That’s because these kinds of decisions may directly affect your property value, access to services, and provision of infrastructure.
In fact, whether or not the city is secretly outsourcing city programs matters to all city taxpayers, all city property owners, all city residents, and all city businesses. It can result in higher taxes, increased fees, and reduced services. The City should be protecting and operating its core services, not outsourcing them to others.
How City Council uses its considerable powers over the running of our city government matters to everyone in Prince Rupert. We pay our hard-earned money in taxes and fees to keep the city government running. City Council not only has the power to spend our money, but it can also raise taxes and increase fees. This is the power of local democracy. We elect them. They therefore have the authority levy taxes on us, raise fees, and to decide how to spend our money.
We also rely on city government for our safety and protection. Property owners, and by extension renters, rely on city infrastructure, from public roads to public water treatment plants, to service our houses and businesses with the amenities, services, and infrastructure that the City provides for us. This maintains our property values and enhances our standards of living.
Because we rely on city government for so much, we must be able to trust it. This requires basic transparency and truthfulness by local government officials, especially by our elected representatives. True, there are lots of decisions that City Council cannot (and should not) make in public, such as hiring, firing, and other personnel matters.
We all know that there are some decisions that can legally be done in secret, but that should be done in public, especially if making these in secret will undermine basic trust in city government. For example, the initial question of whether or not to privatize the city’s water and sewer treatment system should first be made in public. But once decided, the specifics over how municipal employees are paid to run it, or the specifics over contract negotiations with private contractors, should be (and sometimes must be) done in secret.
Any major change in the structure of government starts with public input. That should always be a basic tenet of good local governance.
Will the City Sell Off, Outsource, or Privatize Our Public Water and Sewer System? (Has It Already?)
Prince Rupert residents currently face two urgent problems for which the city is directly responsible. Both of these matters are far more urgent than the matter of outsourcing the library. These questions are: First, is the City secretly planning to privatize the public water and public sewer system? Second, can the City actually fix the water and sewer pipes? Will the job get done?
First, we face the problem of whether the city will attempt to sell off, outsource, or privatize the city’s public water treatment and sewer system, especially after raising tens of millions in taxes and fees to pay for its repair. Second, we face the problem of whether the City will (actually manage to) fix the water and sewer system. Is the Big Project going to get the job done, or will it become the Big Bust instead?
Ultimately, these problems boil down to two questions: Will the City protect or damage our property values? And will the City rebuild or run down Prince Rupert?With so much of our own money at stake, these two basic questions matter to all taxpayers, all residents, and all businesses.
To answer these questions, we need to know if there are other outsourcing and infrastructure decisions that have already been made in secret, without any public comment or oversight. Losing trust on basic governance, such as whether or not the city has already decided to move on outsourcing its core city services, is a big deal.
City Council should correct this matter now, by setting the record straight and releasing all of its prior decisions on public infrastructure commitments (whether to keep infrastructure public or to make it private later on) and on its city outsourcing plans. Since we pay for it, taxpayers and rate-payers, all residents and businesses, have a right to know whether or not the city is planning on giving away our shared assets to someone else.
What Else Don’t We Know?
I am now left wondering what other major decisions, such as ones involving the outsourcing of other city services and responsibilities have already been made in-camera by City Council?
For example, has the city, contrary to its public pronouncements, sent an expression of interest to a private company to outsource the water and sewer system once the system is rebuilt? Related, does the City Council already know about these expressions of interest, and has it already approved, in-secret, major cost overruns of its Big Project?
What’s next? Outsourcing the recreation centre? A deal to privatize the Performing Arts Centre? If these deals are secretly in the works, there’s nothing we can do to inform ourselves or mobilize residents to stop them from happening.
Again, I recognize that a city government should be able to make many kinds of decisions in secret. I also know that there are many decisions that a city may do in secret legally, but that should be made in public. In many instances, this is a political decision, not a legal one. The political question is this: Will keeping this a secret lead residents to question what other secret plans are in the works? Ultimately, it is the job of City Council to build trust with its residents.
It’s clear that the decision to initiate the outsourcing of a major municipal service, without first seeking any public input on the matter, should not be made in secret, if for no other reason than that making this kind of decision in the dark leaves residents wondering…what else have you already decided without telling us first?
While some decisions, such as real estate purchases, personnel matters, and other City business must, should, and may be made in secret, the principle should be that any major change in the structure of government programs and services should start with a public process.
Decisions to start outsourcing core municipal services should always start with public input, including whether to outsource municipal library services to a regional library district. The City should have asked for public input first, before sending its written expression of interest to join VIRL.
Disclosure: My husband Ron Braun is a city-appointed member of the municipal library board and I am a member of the PRDTU’s Keep Our Local Library Local Campaign committee. The views expressed on this blog are my own.
