They Gotta Fund the Olympics Somehow Right?

Taxation Without Representation is Tyranny
A slogan of the Revolutionary War and the years before. The colonists were not allowed to choose representatives to parliament in London, which passed the laws under which they were taxed. To be taxed only with the consent of one’s representatives in Parliament was a particularly cherished right of the people under English law, a right dating back to Magna Carta in the thirteenth century. Each additional tax caused fresh resentment among the colonists. Taxation without representation is one of the principal offenses of Britain listed in the Declaration of Independence.

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Can someone tell me why we're having taxation without representation? Since when did that become part of our "democracy," which admittedly can only really be acknowledged is actually more of an oligarchy, with GC of course being the Oligarch. He certainly isn't smart enough to be the Machiavellian behind these vicious and amoral gouges of BC's citizens. Every way we turn there are government appointed Boards taking more. I don't know about you, but I'm damn tired of all of these unelected bandits and pickpockets stealing money out of my wallet that I need for me and my family to survive. How much have your utility bills gone up in the past year, or longer? Whether it's Hydro, Terasen Gas, or Translink, these unelected, BC Liberal government insiders and appointees keep helping themselves to the fewer and fewer dollars each of us has with each paycheque.
BC Hydro's primary business activities are the generation and distribution of electricity. Transmission of that electricity is facilitated by the BC Transmission Corporation on behalf of BC Hydro and other power providers in B.C.

BC Hydro's Board of Directors are here.

It's time for a reality check, let's look at some of the pertinent details about the players in this game, how about the fact that in the 2006/07 fiscal year 9 out of the 20 top highest paid senior executives of Crown agencies hailed from those lucky, lucky Liberal appointees and friends.

Executive Salaries & Compensation of BC Hydro executives for the 2006/07 fiscal year from the Top 20 highest paid Crown agency executives:

-Bob Elton President and CEO - $478,849. He's the 4th out of 20 highest paid Liberal appointed head of a Crown agency. Bob Elton was appointed Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of BC Hydro in November 2003.

- John Rodford, VP - $397,373, #8 out of 20
- Barry Hikichi, Construction Manager - $493,423. 9/20
- Him Cheung Luk, Engineering Team leader - $386,316. 10/20
- Alister Cowan, Chief Financial Officer - $359,515. 11/20
- Bev Van Ruyven, VP - $343,886. 12/20
- BP Cole, Manager - $317,486. 16/20
- Bruce Sampson, VP - $304,905. 18/20
- Christopher O'Riley, - $302,251. 20/20

Tell Bob Elton & the Board Chair, what you think of this latest price gouge for our very own BC Hydro by e-mailing, or calling him here:

Phone: 604 224-9376 (Greater Vancouver); 1 800 224-9376 (Other Areas)

E-mail: https://www.bchydro.com/contact/index.jsp?pg=

You'll probably not be surprised that the senior executives of the BC Transmission Corporation find themselves in the Top 20 highest salaries as well:

- Jane Peverett, President & CEO - $424,602. 7/20
- Brian Gabel, CFO - $332,536. 14/20

The Commission has been self-funded since 1988. Its costs are recovered primarily through a levy on the public utilities it regulates.

So, does that mean the more money it allows public utilities to take from taxpayers the more money it brings in? How exactly are those costs calculated?

The British Columbia Utilities Commission is a regulatory agency of the Provincial Government, operating under and administering the Utilities Commission Act ("UCA"). The Commission is responsible for ensuring that customers receive safe, reliable and non-discriminatory energy services at fair rates from the utilities it regulates, that shareholders of these utilities are afforded a reasonable opportunity to earn a fair return on their invested capital, and that the competitive interests of B.C. businesses are not frustrated. It approves the construction of new facilities planned by utilities and their issuance of securities. The Commission's function is quasi-judicial and it has the power to make legally binding rulings. Decisions and Orders of the Commission may be appealed to the Court of Appeal on questions of law or jurisdiction.

British Columbia Hydro and Power Authority / March 13, 2009
F2009 and F2010 Revenue Requirements

Leonard Kelsey, Commissioner of BCUC - $112,623

More wellpaid BCUC appointees here.

Tell the BCUC what you think of their continuing agreement with the price gouging of BC's citizens:

Telephone: (604) 660-4700; B.C. Toll Free: 1-800-663-1385
E-Mail: Commission.Secretary@bcuc.com

Maybe we should all boycott paying our BC Hydro bills for the month of April. Lets just see what impact and message that would have as we head to the ballot box on May 12th and tell the government we just won't let let their unelected appointees continue to gouge us.
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B.C. Hydro rates to rise 11 per cent by 2010

Scott Simpson,Victoria Times Colonist. March 13 2009.

BC Hydro can raise electricity rates by about 11 per cent over two years, the British Columbia Utilities Commission announced on Friday.

In a 288-page ruling, the commission agreed with Hydro's plan to use the rate increases to support a massive expansion of funding for capital projects to upgrade the crown corporation's aging hydroelectric assets.

However, the commission also ordered Hydro to cut its annual operating budget by three per cent for the fiscal year beginning April 1, 2009 - reflecting the provincial government's efforts to keep a lid on operational expenses during the current recession.

The BCUC ruled that Hydro could collect about three per cent for the current fiscal year - which actually comes to an end on March 30 - and eight per cent for fiscal 2009-2010 beginning April 1, 2009.