The following letter was published today by Joe Ward. Joe is drawing attention to equalization fairness and the fact that it will be a hot topic in the next municipal election. We will make sure it is! With the constant increasing and over the moon property tax rates in the CBRM, how can it not be first and foremost on the minds of the voters? Here is Joe’s well-done letter: EQUALIZATION FAIRNESS ISSUE COULD IMPACT FALL ELECTION 6 Jun 2024 David Delaney’s commentary listed above advises us to bury the Cape Breton Regional Municipality (CBRM) equalization fairness fight and he suggests a “better alternative” that requires a “relentless application of (hard work and logic) with all three levels of government.” Either way — equalization fairness or Delaney’s alternative — define their success as funnelling more federal dollars to municipalities like ours. Neither is easy. When targeting more federal dollars for CBRM’s needs and to lower taxes, it’s intuitive that the billions the feds send to Nova Scotia for that purpose is the primary target. The target and the strategy aren’t the same, but at least we know where the money is coming from. There’s more to “equalization fairness” than just former CBRM mayor John Morgan’s mythology. Both his legacy and equalization fairness supporters are significant factors in CBRM voter decisions. While Delaney is fittingly amused at how “local politicians run toward it, then away”, they cannot do so unscathed. It’s one of the key reasons why Amanda McDougall Merrill is our mayor right now, instead of Cecil Clarke in his third term. With Morgan out, Clarke managed to get elected for a first term as mayor in 2012. He narrowly slipped by for a second term in 2016 when the public thought challenger Rankin MacSween “blamed” the Thanksgiving Day storm on the CBRM. (FYI, he didn’t). Clarke finally met defeat when McDougall trounced him in 2020 despite his two-term incumbency. His opposition to equalization, contrasted with McDougall embracing it, were most certainly a component of the deficit of thousands of votes he succumbed to on election night. And it will once again factor this October. After becoming premier in 2021, Tim Houston sent the CBRM an extra $15 million with nary a “thank you”, then took it away after a willy-nilly property tax break that primarily wound up benefitting big box stores. We can’t restore that $15 million and then some without the impact of the influential equalization fairness voice. Joe Ward Sydney