A pair of Regina city councillors and a Regina resident are taking the city’s new city manager Niki Anderson to court.
They are taking Anderson to court over city administration’s decision not to include an item on ending homelessness in the current proposed budget.
Councillor Dan LeBlanc, a lawyer, is representing Councillor Andrew Stevens and Florence Stratton.
LeBlanc explained why they felt the need to court.
“I think council has already done its legislative democratic role, which is to provide clear direction to an unelected city manager of what we need in that proposed budget,” he said. “The problem is that wasn’t followed, and from a political perspective, we are out of options as to what to get into that proposed budget. Unfortunately, that means only legal resource is available.”
“Given the looming date of the budget debate, that application was required on an urgent basis,” he added.
LeBlanc said they could try and include it when the city discusses its budget, but that would lead to a couple of issues.
“One of them is simple. Democratic accountability. I say, elected people get to run the show, and the unelected city manager follows our clear direction or ought to do so,” he said. “If it’s in the draft budget as directed, it takes six votes to out; if it’s not in the draft budget, it takes six votes to put it in, and that stuff sometimes makes a difference.”
Mayor Sandra Masters had choice words for the councillor’s decision to file the suit.
“It’s disgusting,” she stated. “I question myself if I look at it go, how do two parties who are partied to a council motion, then represent it legally.”
“I think there were multiple avenues open; I think it’s in the budget. I think the administration was never told to recommend it, the administration is to give advice and advise on their recommendations to council, and they did so,” she said. “Whether or not council accepts them is something else entirely and up for debate at budget.”
Masters pointed back to the June 15th council meeting when administration was originally asked to create a report on the full cost of ending homelessness in the city.
“I think if you go back to the transcripts from June 15th council meeting, when questioned about it, it was simply going to be debated at budget time. That was what council understood.”
Masters said that city council shouldn’t and can’t be mandating was city administration should be recommending.
“That is an administration budget. We were asking for numbers to be considered,” she explained. “Those numbers exist. We can go and look at them, and there is some analyst and an attached report, and you can clearly see them.”
“We did not direct administration to recommend it,” she continued. “What you saw in the budget book was administrations recommendation and their fulfillment of the request for the numbers.”
Barry Lacey, the executive director of financial strategy and sustainability, said that the homelessness initiative wasn’t included due to the impact on the taxes, which is an estimated 21 per cent hike.
“As administration, we are tasked with providing our best advice to provide a balanced budget that ensures city operations and infrastructure are funded and that council priorities are being met in a way that’s affordable to taxpayers.”
