When last the press asked about the provincial government's lackadaisical efforts to repair its broken lobbyist registry, Attorney General Wally Oppal said his deputy had issued a position paper reviewing the legislation. So has any progress been made since March? Well, speaking with Public Eye on Tuesday, Attorney General Oppal said he has, "met with the privacy commissioner" - who's responsible for the lobbyist registry - "and he has given us a report. And we'll have to study the report and move forward from there." So is there any timeline for moving forward on David Loukidelis's recommendations? "Not really. I just received it about a week and a half ago. We had quite a fruitful meeting. And he's made some suggestions. And we'll have to look at them."

Earlier, we reported the Campbell administration spent $149,726.71 producing videos for the premier's fourth annual innovation and excellence awards. The contract to do that production was given to Big Red Barn Media Group Inc. following a competitive bid process. But not every contractor for the awards ceremonies had to go through such a process. Western Pro Show Rentals Ltd. - which organized the provincial Liberal's leader's tour during the 2001 and 2005 election campaigns - was directly awarded the $90,000 contract to provide audio visual services for the awards ceremonies.

And why was such a direct award necessary? "Because a competitive process would interfere with the ministry's ability to maintain security or order or to protect human, animal or plant life or health," according to Western Pro Show's contract.

An attached note to file, dated April 1, 2007, went onto state, "Confidentiality in planning around Minister's appearances is a necessity. It is imperative that suppliers involved in government events have the trust and confidence of ministers and staff involvement in all aspects of event management. This supplier has demonstrated they can work within the security requirements established for government events." Western Pro Show, which has a standing contract with government, received $82,723.12 in fees from that contract. The following is a complete copy of the aforementioned note to file.

***

Western Pro Show Rentals Ltd. (C08PAB11406) Security

Note to File (April 1, 2007)

This supplier is one of five suppliers retained by the Public Affairs Bureau to provide light, sound, video, electronic media distribution, etc., for provincial government events such as public appearances, announcements and press conferences.

Confidentiality in planning around Minister's appearances is a necessity. It is imperative that the suppliers involved in government events have the trust and confidence of ministers and staff involved in all aspects of event management. This supplier has demonstrated they can work within the security reqirements established for government events. Based on these security requirements, the contract has been directly awarded in accordance with the exception criteria listed in the Core Policy Manual section 6.3.3(a) 1.

A standing contract has been entered into for ease of administration thereby eliminating the need to enter into a new contract each time the contractor's services are required.

Regardless of the date signed, the term of the contract will commence on April 1, 2007 up to and including March 31st, 2008. The maximum contract total is $ (fees: $; expenses: $).

Name
Title

Our good friends at Maximus Inc. - the American firm that won the privatization contract to administer PharmaCare and British Columbia's Medical Services Plan - aren't getting much comfort from the southern state of Tennessee. Earlier this month, The Commercial Appeal's Tom Bailey Jr. reported 25th judicial district attorney general Michael Dunavant wouldn't be renewing a five-year, $7.3 million child support services and enforcement contract with the company. According to new release announcing that decision, the contract wasn't renewed because of "declining efficiency in performance measures" and "numerous complaints from clients of the program that the current private company is not effective in serving the best interests of the children of this district." Fancy that! The following is a complete copy of that release.

PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The State of Tennessee Department of Human Services (DHS) provides funding for and administers the child support programs in all thirty-one (31) judicial districts in Tennessee. DHS enters into grant agreements with either Tennessee District Attorneys General or private child support companies to establish and maintain child support enforcement offices and programs at the local judicial district level, to comply with the provisions of Title IV-D of the Federal Social Security Act. Here in the 25th Judicial District, which includes Lauderdale, Tipton, Fayette, Hardeman, and McNairy counties, the current State contract is with Maximus Child Support Services, Inc., a private company that has served these counties for the last 5 years, since 2003, and that contract expired on June 30, 2008.

District Attorney General D. Michael Dunavant is pleased to announce that, effective July 1, 2008, this office will provide all child support establishment and enforcement services for the 25th Judicial District (Lauderdale, Tipton, Fayette, Hardeman, and McNairy Counties). Pursuant to a request from the DHS and the Tennessee District Attorneys General Conference, General Dunavant agreed to assume the responsibility for establishment and enforcement of all child support cases in this district. As of July 1, 2008, Tennessee District Attorneys General will be responsible for child support enforcement in 21 of the 31 judicial districts in Tennessee, including this one. This decision by DHS and General Dunavant has come as a result of declining efficiency in performance measures in this district over the last 5 years by Maximus, as well as numerous complaints from clients of the program that the current private company is not effective in serving the best interests of the children of this district.

As a result of this change in child support contract providers, General Dunavant has established a new Child Support Enforcement Division in his office, in addition to the Criminal Division which already serves this district by the prosecution of criminal offenses. The new Child Support Enforcement Division will have new offices in Bolivar (to serve Fayette, Hardeman, and McNairy counties) and in Covington (to serve Tipton and Lauderdale counties), and will consist of twenty-nine (29) total employees, including 1 Child Support Administrator, 2 Child Support Assistant District Attorneys General, 2 Paralegals, 2 Specialist III Supervisors, 17 Specialist II Case Managers (specializing in the areas of child support establishment, enforcement, and interstate cases), 4 Specialist I Customer Service Representatives, and 1 Child Support Investigator. The offices will also be relocating to different sites at 101 Mueller Brass Road in Covington and at 1361 Market Street/Highway 64 in Bolivar to accommodate the increased staff and to better serve the public. Finally, General Dunavant will be making significant changes in the quality and efficiency of child support service to the citizens of the 25th Judicial District, including changes in personnel, training, case management, service of legal process, prosecution of criminal contempt and flagrant non-support offenses, office management and supervision, telephone systems, customer service, professionalism, and attitude. All new employee positions have been filled with qualified persons dedicated to serving the children of this district.

Additionally, in the next few months, General Dunavant and his Child Support Administrative staff will be meeting with all Judges and Clerks in the Juvenile and Chancery Courts in the five counties in this district, as well as all five Sheriffs, to ensure that this new Child Support Enforcement Division properly serves the interests of justice by working well with those Courts and officers to achieve fair and effective results that directly serve the children of this district in a positive and timely manner.

This is an important service to children in our community, and General Dunavant is committed to improving the effectiveness of child support enforcement in this district. Failure to pay child support is not a victimless crime in Tennessee. This office will take whatever legal measures are necessary to enforce child support orders, including prosecution for civil contempt (which carries up to 10 days in jail for each violation), criminal contempt (which is equivalent to a Class B misdemeanor and carries up to 6 months in jail), nonsupport (which is a Class A misdemeanor that carries up to 11 months, 29 days in jail), flagrant nonsupport (which is a Class E Felony offense which carries a possible punishment of 1-2 years in the penitentiary), administrative revocation of licenses (including driver's licenses, hunting licenses, and professional licenses), and garnishment and attachment of wages, accounts, and IRS tax refunds.

Since General Dunavant's election to this office in 2006, he has striven to put in place various programs which serve the interests of public safety. Through grant funding, this office has reorganized and established the 25th Judicial District Drug Task Force, and has been a participant in a pilot Drug Court program in Fayette County. With help from Governor Bredesen, General Dunavant has participated in and promoted public education of the dangers of methamphetamine, through the "Meth is Death" campaign. General Dunavant serves on the executive and legislative committees of the Tennessee District Attorneys General Conference, as well as the Tennessee Public Safety Coalition. Through that service, General Dunavant has worked with Tennessee legislators to strengthen criminal penalties for violent felonies committed with firearms, under the "Crooks with Guns" law that passed last year. Also, thanks to the efforts of our local members of the General Assembly, this office was able to receive funding to hire two additional Assistant District Attorneys to meet an ever-growing criminal caseload in this district. General Dunavant has worked very closely with the Carl Perkins Child Advocacy Centers in this district to more effectively prosecute crimes committed against children. Later this year, General Dunavant hopes to receive grant funding through the Governor's Highway Safety Office to provide a DUI prosecutor and coordinator to focus on DUI and other alcohol and drug related driving offenses in Fayette and Tipton counties. It is General Dunavant's hope and intention that, by assuming the responsibility for child support enforcement in this district, he can continue to fulfill the expectations of the citizens of the 25th Judicial District to use the resources and authority of this office to effectively serve them in any way possible.

If you have any questions regarding this new Child Support Enforcement Division, or wish to speak to General Dunavant about any issues, please contact him or your local child support office. The telephone number in Covington is (901) 475-0342. The telephone number in Bolivar is (731) 659-3215. For more information on the State of Tennessee Child Support Program, please visit the DHS website at: http://state.tn.us/humanserv/cs/cs main.htm.

The B.C. Pavilion Corp.'s most recent annual report concedes the number of days out-of-province delegates spent attending events at the Vancouver Convention and Exhibition Centre was "marginally" lower than forecast in fiscal 2007/08. But that difference - 152,000 versus 147,119 delegate days - would have been less marginal if the corporation hadn't lowered that forecast.

When initial planning for the convention centre expansion project was completed in 2002, the number of delegate days for fiscal 2007/08 was estimated at 199,983. But, according to the corporation's fiscal 2004/05 report, "events of 2001 significantly reduced non-resident visitors to Vancouver." A review was conducted to "ensure that expectations can be realized." And the corporation's forecast was lowered to 151,646 in fiscal 2006/07 because "growth in attendance at VCEC has been slower than anticipated in previous plans."

Asked for comment, convention and exhibition centre communications director Deborah Carty explained the original target was based on KPMG Inc. projections "which used numbers before 9/11, SARS and increased competition from other convention centres." So, in 2005, the convention centre and Tourism Vancouver "re-commissioned KPMG to update their projections" - taking into account those factors. And that's where the new forecast came from.

The coporation states delegate days "is the first priority and primary performance indicator" for the convention centre.

The Campbell administration spent $587,791.06 on parties to celebrate civil service achievements, Public Eye has exclusively learned. But the government says such celebrations are needed to help retain and recruit employees in a tight labour market. According to documents obtained via a freedom of information request, the government paid out at least $77,564.63 catering to the dining desires of the 1,813 bureaucrats and guests who were scheduled to attend the premier's fourth annual innovation and excellence awards.

Among the menu items for the awards - which included four regional and one provincial ceremony - were salmon baked with fresh dill, rosemary crusted free range chicken breast, apple tart with sweet cream and caramel sauce and Vienna chocolate caramel tort. Swag worth $39,759.14 - including umbrellas, scarves and pins - was also handed out at the parties.

But the big ticket item at $149,726.71 was the production of video interviews with award nominees, as well as five "fun, high energy" ceremony opening videos "intended to inspire government employees and guests about the range, quality and importance of work in the public service."

Asked for comment, Canadian Taxpayers Federation provincial communications director Maureen Bader said, "It's an extremely irresponsible example of spending."

"It's not a crime to celebrate success," she continued. "The problem in government is that they're spending other people's money."

But government spokesman Richard Chambers defended the expenditure saying, "We're proud of our employees and the work they do. And these ceremonies - not parties - are an important way we show our appreciation and show their colleagues, their families and the public the positive impact that these people are making day-in and day-out." The following is a complete copy of the expenditures for the awards.

***

Expenditures for fiscal 2007/08 premier's innovation and excellence awards

Adjudicators/Judges Expenses $7,694.97
Audio-Visual Requirements $86,315.11
Award Material $24,603.79
Business Expenses for Adjudication/Judges Sessions $2,481.11
Catering/Facilities, etc. $104,579.92
Decorations $3,853.97
Marketing and Communications $14,486.25
Miscellaneous (swag/shipping, etc.) $7,159.15
Newspaper Ads $22,254.22
Photographer $7,490.00
Printing (including program guides) $18,497.41
Staff Travel $16,763.31
Staff Salary & Benefits $76,126.00
Swag $39,759.14
Video Production (all-inclusive) $149,726.71
Total $587,791.06

Earlier, we exclusively told you about Sergio and Wendy Cocchia's efforts to develop the government's promised autism education and research centre. But not everyone is supportive of those efforts. In an open letter to Premier Gordon Campbell, Moms on the Move reported that parents surveyed using an informal Web questionnaire had "serious concerns about the process and parameters" used to "notionally" allocated $20 million in government funding toward the centre. But the Autism Community Training Society has conducted it's own consultations with "key individuals in the autism community" and found "the general response to the prospect of having an Autism Centre for B.C. was positive. The general sentiment was that this was an exciting project with enormous potential to improve the situation for families and individuals with autism of all ages." The following is a complete copy of both documents.

July 29, 2008

Hon. Gordon Campbell,
Premier, British Columbia
Victoria, BC

Dear Premier,

Moms on the Move is a volunteer parent network that provides information, advocacy and support to families of people with autism and other special needs. Our provincial parent network reaches over 1,000 BC families, professionals, service providers and others.

Our families describe extraordinary hardship due to underfunding and major provincial service gaps for people of all ages with special needs, such as waitlists, supports denied to adults with autism or FASD and IQ over 70, no early intervention therapy for diagnoses other than autism, inadequate services in rural areas and schools and lack of support for families trying to care for challenging children.

On July 24th, we were invited with other autism community leaders to a private consultation meeting at the Century Plaza Hotel in Vancouver. We were delighted to learn there that you had personally committed $20 million in new provincial funding for autism in 2008-09.

Our meeting hosts outlined plans for a new provincial autism family centre in the Lower Mainland, with the $20 million directed to construct a new high-tech building that could house research, treatment, residential facilities, training and outreach. We were told the facilities would include a swimming pool, sports centre and playing fields for children with autism. The proponents, parents of a child with autism, sought input and support regarding proposed activities and governance for the new centre. They noted their intention to hand over management of the facility to the community once it was built. Other points noted:

* The proposal is being developed at the Premier's request. He personally called proponents before the 2008 Throne Speech to give a “heads up' that funding was approved.

* The Premier invited proponents to meet him after the Throne Speech and requested a formal proposal for one-time capital funding of $20 million for a building to house a provincial autism centre.

* Proponents don't know which Ministry budget is funding this. A Board was established, consultants engaged, private fundraising is underway and private community consultations initiated to flesh out the proposal, all based on the Premier's personal 'commitment' to proponents.

* Proponents not aware of a competitive process or competing proposals for allocating the $20 million.

* Proponents cite the following criteria specified by the Premier for spending the $20 million:

* Funds can only be spent on a building. Suggestions that funds might be better spent on enhancing existing services or programs can therefore not be entertained.

* Government won't fund operating costs for any proposed activities or services at the new centre. Such activities must be funded from existing budgets or through private fundraising.

* Private fundraising needed to supplement the $34 million cost of the proposed building.

* The new provincial centre is to be located somewhere in the lower mainland, possibly at SFU.

* Formal proposal must be submitted by fall 2008, with groundbreaking before spring 2009, or the Premier's $20 million 'commitment' will expire.

* No needs assessment done. Proponents have long been lobbying the premier to fund such a centre.

* Proponents know of no public consultations conducted/ planned by government to ensure the $20 million is spent in the public interest. Proponents are arranging their own consultations.

Provincial autism policy in BC falls under the Ministry for Children and Families. There is no reference to a new provincial autism centre as a priority in any publicly-available Ministry documents, including the Ministry's service plans or the new Ministry action plan. BC Budget documents on the Finance Ministry Website contain no reference to funding an autism centre. The Minister responsible did not mention these plans in the spring 2008 Estimates debates. Ministry staff was not available at the July 24 consultation to answer questions. Government's only public reference to this initiative to date was a sentence in the Throne Speech.

At the July 24th meeting, we agreed to a suggestion to use the MOMS network, as the province's largest autism/special needs parent network, to help gather feedback on this proposal. We developed and distributed an informal Web questionnaire through provincial networks to assess parent views and priorities. Preliminary results (attached) indicate that families have serious concerns about the process and parameters that you established for allocating those funds. Key concerns include the following:

* Why spend $20 on a new building instead of on programs and services? (Why not use some of the hundreds of under-utilized public schools in BC instead? Why not instead help people in dire need because of your decision to deny services based on IQ over 70?). Only 4% (8 of 226) respondents so far think a new building is a priority for new spending.

* Why more facilities in the lower mainland, where most existing expertise/services are concentrated, instead of targeting outlying communities that suffer limited expertise and services? Respondents favour more services delivered locally to a new provincial centre of excellence by a majority of 92:8.

* Why more resources for autism only vs. supporting all children with special needs that could benefit from intervention therapies? Many existing autism programs would greatly benefit children with other special needs who are currently denied access. A majority of respondents (57%), most of whom were families of children with autism, would prefer to see the money going to both autism and others.

* Why are plans being developed outside the normal policy processes, with single-source procurement and no broad community/family engagement? 83% of respondents would prefer spending decisions made by the Minister responsible, in full consultation with families, professionals and providers. 96% believe funds would be spent more effectively following an open and transparent competitive bidding process and evaluation of proposals by a representative panel of community members.

Information provided to date raises questions about process and whether this is the best way to serve the public interest. It's not clear why a significant sum of public dollars would be “committed' in the manner described - i.e. outside the Ministry's special needs/autism policy structure, provincial procurement policy, and with no public consultation or needs assessment. We therefore ask for an immediate clarification re your role as Premier in allocating these funds and setting project parameters. It would also be helpful for the MCFD Minister to provide a public explanation regarding the Ministry's role and responsibilities.

In closing, we wish to stress that notwithstanding the above questions, we applaud the news of your government's commitment of $20 million in new funding to serving vulnerable children. We offer our full support to assisting the Minister responsible to ensure these funds are targeted at the most urgent needs, in a manner consistent with the public interest. We propose that this requires starting afresh, with full and inclusive community consultation conducted by a neutral party to review existing parameters, and with an open, fair and transparent decision-making process to ensure these public funds are well spent.

We look forward to your prompt reply.

Dawn Steele & Cyndi Gerlach

Moms on the Move

CC: Minister Tom Christensen; Representative for Children & Youth Mary Ellen Turpel Lafond, MOMS

***

Pacific Autism Centre-
An Autism Knowledge Centre
For British Columbia

Report on a Preliminary
Community Consultation

Prepared by ACT - Autism Community Training
July 9, 2008

Report on Preliminary Community Consultation

Introduction

In June 2008, ACT - Autism Community Training Society received a request to contribute to plans for the development of the Pacific Autism Centre. In particular, ACT was asked to help in the development of a community consultation process to ensure that the proposal currently being developed for the Centre by the Pacific Autism Centre Society reflects parental and professional interests and priorities.

After consulting ACT's Board of Directors, Clair Schuman, Executive Director, and Deborah Pugh, Director Research & Training, began an intensive process of consultations, contacting key individuals in the autism community in British Columbia by telephone and in face to face meetings. Most of these individuals are parents/professionals who have worked collaboratively with ACT in the past and include many of the leaders in autism treatment, research, information and parent support, training and diagnosis in B.C. Below are the key themes that emerged from these informal conversations.

In addition, ACT has facilitated a meeting between Simon Fraser University and Sergio Cocchia, board member of the Pacific Autism Centre Society with the purpose of encouraging a discussion of a partnership to develop the proposed Centre as a centre for autism research, in addition to treatment and family support.

Context: Individuals Impacted by ASD, and their families, in B.C.

* British Columbia, in common with the rest of North America, is experiencing a dramatic increase in the incidence of autism; what was once a relatively rare condition is now being diagnosed in 1 in 150 births. Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is now more common than Down Syndrome, Cerebral Palsy or Childhood Cancer. While it is a diagnosis made by the medical community, its treatment is primarily within the educational model, i.e., therapeutic instruction rather than medication. However, understanding and treating ASD requires a host of disciplines; medical professionals are key to the treatment team in part because of the high incidence of co-morbid disorders including depression and anxiety.
* In the last decade research has indicated that early intervention is essential for children to overcome the worst effects of ASD. Therapies based on Applied Behavior Analysis, in combination with Speech Language and Occupational Therapy are having a significant positive impact. Children and their families are clearly benefiting when they have access to high quality intensive intervention.
* A cure is still not available; however, individualized intensive treatment can offer significant positive outcomes for the child with ASD and their family. Moreover, such treatment brings down the burden to the taxpayer of institutional care for adults with ASD.
* As of January 2008 there are over 5,000 children diagnosed with ASD in B.C. who are receiving autism treatment funding from the Ministry of Children and Family Development. Currently, millions of dollars are spent annually on autism funding for children with ASD.
* Most parents are highly motivated to provide their child with ASD with treatment. While children with ASD are highly individual those who remain untreated or whose treatment is substandard, or those who are particularly complex, often demonstrate challenging behaviors which can lead to severe isolation for their families.
* While families impacted by poverty, ESL issues or disabling conditions affecting the parents are particularly vulnerable, recent research has demonstrated that ASD impacts families economically in terms of their ability to work and contribute to society, whatever their social class: “We found that 39% of parents of children with diagnosed ASD reported that, in the previous year, someone in the family had quit a job, not taken a job, or greatly changed a job because of child care problems related to the child with ASD. These findings were substantiated in multivariate analyses controlling for several potentially confounding variables. In fact, the size of the effect was 3 times larger than the effect of poverty, suggesting that having a child with ASD may be the most important risk factor for child care problems affecting employment among these families. http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/122/1/e202
* Parents of pre-school children with ASD in B.C. bear a particularly heavy burden because in most cases the expectation of them is that they will run in-home treatment programs for their children.
* They report that they urgently require access to flexible learning opportunities, accessible from their own communities if they are to better understand how to set up the treatment teams their children need. Professionals share their concerns.
* The challenge for parents is exacerbated because while they have access to funding, there are chronic shortages of behavior consultants, speech-language pathologists, and behavior interventionists - especially outside of Metro Vancouver. For a perspective on the lives of families see the Vancouver Sun's Faces of Autism series at www.actcommunity.net/news/news_2007Award.htm.
* In addition, many families who have access to Autism Funding report that funding is insufficient to run the type of intensive program that researchers endorse. The expectation that they supplement the government funding with family resources cannot be met and they worry that their child is going without vital treatment.
* A challenge for B.C. is to make treatment informed by research generally accessible across the province. (For a federal report on a recent Canadian symposium on autism see www.cihr-irsc.gc.ca/e/36237.html - in particular section 3.1 on knowledge translation.)
* ACT manages the Registry of Autism Service Providers (RASP) on behalf of the Ministry of Children & Family Development (MCFD). ACT is working to strengthen standards of treatment for children with ASD but has no role in monitoring the quality of service that children are actually receiving although it does manage a complaints resolution process for families.

The Initial Consultation Process: June 25 - July 8, 2008
Subject of Consultation

ACT staff began by communicating with as many key members of the autism community, both professionals and parents, as were available. (See Appendix A) They shared the broad outline of the project as described to ACT by Sergio Cocchia. As ACT's staff understands the project, this is envisioned as a centre that:

* Will provide services to individuals with ASD across the age span;
* Will have a swimming pool, playing fields and a gymnasium;
* Make available direct therapies including Speech, OT, Music and Play Therapy.
* Offer respite facilities to families;
* Provide economical accommodation to families visiting Metro Vancouver for consultation;
* Provide a teaching facility for young adults preparing for the workforce;
* There would be a lecture hall and classrooms with the technological capacity to be linked with the rest of the province.

Those consulted were asked or encouraged to respond in these broad areas:
1. What they thought of the idea of an Autism Centre;
2. What should be included;
3. What should be avoided:
4. Whether they would be interested in engaging in the further consultation in the development of the Centre.

Responses to Consultation
1. Responses to the Idea of an Autism Centre for British Columbia
* The general response to the prospect of having an Autism Centre for B.C. was strongly positive. The general sentiment was that this was an exciting project with enormous potential to improve the situation for families and individuals with autism of all ages.
* There was endorsement of the decision of the ACT Board to facilitate the community consultation process.
* However, there was a sense of caution that the Centre needed to respond to provincial needs and priorities of families and not just to those who live in Metro Vancouver.
* There was also a general sense that some of the facilities envisioned, including swimming pool, gymnasium & sports fields should be seen as a means to train community paraprofessionals from across B.C. in working with children with ASD - inclusion of children and adults with ASD in their local communities with trained supports should be the goal.

2. Advice on What Should be Included
* The development of an overarching vision for the centre that the autism community could buy into was thought to be important by many.
* A strong link with research - collaboration with researchers across the province, in particular with UBC, Capilano University and Douglas College was urged by those contacted but also that national connections should be cultivated. The prospect of this Centre having a strong relationship with the new Chair in Autism Treatment at Simon Fraser University was supported. There was the sense that having this link would protect the Centre from pressure to run programs that do not have a strong foundation in best practices in autism treatment.
* Support for this being a centre for diagnosis, to meet the current shortfall in diagnostic capacity but also to provide a centre for training of diagnosticians.
* There was support for a program housed at the centre that would provide intensive training/orientation for families of the newly diagnosed. Particularly for those families living in isolated areas of the province so that they could return to their communities with basic skills & understanding. These should be informed by international best practices and connected with research so as to ensure that funding is being well spent.
* A valuable role of a Centre would be to develop initial treatment programs and provide an on-going monitoring role. Not for every child but as a means of setting standards for treatment provincially. This could begin with treatment planning for the newly diagnosed child involving disciplines relevant to the child's age and functioning, including a behavior consultant, speech & occupational therapy with input from medical specialists when needed. This would be part of a provincial training and mentoring function to develop autism treatment capacity outside of Metro Vancouver - ultimately it could act as a hub.
* The Centre should offer on-going consultative support for families and professionals outside of Metro Vancouver using a variety of means including video conferencing & webcasting as developed with the tele-health initiative.
* The Centre should address issues across the age range in recognition that children grow up:
* A pre-school program was seen as a positive initiative, especially if the centre can be located in an underserved area and be connected with research to benefit programs elsewhere in the province. Hope was that it could be a place where professionals and para-professionals could receive further training.
* Hope that high functioning young children and youth with ASD could have access to social skills development & employment opportunities. Currently, these young people have limited access to supports at 19 if their IQ is 70 or over, regardless of their functional ability.
* There was strong support for the centre providing education & training for young adults with ASD who need support preparing for the workforce. The idea being that these ideas could then be replicated in other interested institutions in B.C. and that they should be informed by the best programs internationally and be connected to the research agenda.

3. What Should be Avoided
* Avoid any residential component for children or adults. Those consulted were strongly opposed to any residential programs, unless it was for a fixed period for imparting specific skill sets such as employment readiness skills training for young adults.
* Agreement that this should not be the site of a school for children with ASD.
* Provide direct service but in the context also of training. Concern that professionals would be pulled out of one venue to relocate to the Centre. Those consulted spoke of the overall shortages of professionals and thought the thrust should be for government to encourage UBC/SFU to graduate increased numbers of SLP's, OT, Behavior Consultants and teachers with Special Education qualifications and for the center to act as a venue for supervised practical experience, not only direct service.
* Avoid any duplication of programs and services that are currently being successfully operated by other organizations and are available.

4. Whether they would be interested in engaging in the process of consultation in the development of the Centre.
* All of those contacted were prepared to engage in the consultative & planning process.
* There were concerns over the tight timelines.
* There was a general hope that the proposal due to be ready in September could remain broad in scope to enable focus groups to be established on specific components of the Centre following submission of the proposal.
* Agreement that it would be important to contact similar centres in the US to exchange ideas and review operational models.
* Many of those consulted agreed that there was a need for face to face discussion where a mission statement or statement of purpose could be endorsed prior to the proposal being finalized. Following acceptance of the proposal, further public input could be sought. This would prevent considerable time being spent at a larger meeting on the perceived merits of programs and/or methods that have little or no promising empirical evidence of efficacy in autism treatment.

Earlier this year, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business welcomed former provincial Liberal operations director Brian Bonney as their new British Columbia director. And, since then, Mr. Bonney has made a number of comments that have put him off-side of the Campbell administration. For example, last month, in an interview with The Province's John Bermingham, Mr. Bonney said, "The dramatic rise in energy prices since the 2008 B.C. budget makes additional taxes unnecessary and even punitive for some" - a reference to the government's new carbon tax. Speaking with The Vancouver Sun's Brian Morton, Mr. Bonney also called on the Campbell administration to "address" flagging small and medium-size business confidence in British Columbia. And, in February, Mr. Bonney called on B.C. Transit to "reconsider" its controversial proposed Douglas Street busway project in Victoria. This, according to the Times Colonist's Andrew Duffy. Fancy that!

Children and Family Development Minister Tom Christensen says the provincial government has "notionally allocated" $20 million toward the construction of its promised autism education and research centre. In a scrum just before this morning's cabinet meeting, Minister Christensen stated, "It's a throne speech commitment. And it's certainly within the responsibilities of MCFD. And it's something I know there's some good discussions going on about. But we're really waiting to hear back from the community about them fleshing out the idea, in terms of where it might go." In fact, said Minister Christensen, "It's not part of MCFD's budget. What we've looked at is the potential capital cost of a project. But it really does need to be fleshed out. It's very early days in terms of what the project might be." Yesterday, Public Eye exclusively reported on hotel and spa owners Sergio and Wendy Cocchia involvement with the centre.

Former public service agency deputy minister Vince Collins's company continues to receive big transfers from the provincial government - $363,950 in fiscal 2006/07 and $401,867 in fiscal 2007/08. But the company owned by his old civil service colleague Lee Donney - RLD Strategies Inc. - received even bigger transfers in this past fiscal year - $579,241. That's an increase of $292,289 over fiscal 2006/07.

In an interview with Public Eye, hotel and spa owner Sergio Cocchia said he's discussed having the provincial government commit $20 million toward building a autism education and research centre with Premier Gordon Campbell. Mr. Cocchia says he doesn't know whether that funding has been approved. But he and his wife Wendy have already started raising money for that centre. Last month, The Vancouver Sun's Malcolm Parry reported Ms. Cocchia's annual Women's Media Golf Classic "raised the tourney's reported $2.7 million past earnings by '$90,000 and counting' for a new Pacific Autism Family Centre." Attendees at the fundraiser's banquet included Premier Campbell.

Earlier, Autism Community Training Society executive director Clair Schuman told us Premier Gordon Campbell had approached hotel and spa owners Sergio and Wendy Cocchia about developing an autism education and research centre. But, in an interview with Public Eye, Mr. Cocchia said it was actually the other way around. "Wendy and I have approached the premier on many, many occassions and spoke to him about the need for more services and more help for families with autism and had spoken to him about our thought of building an autism centre for British Columbia," said Mr. Cocchia, who has an autistic son. "We've been speaking to the premier about this every opportunity we get."

And what about claims the government has committed $20 million to the centre? "I know there was a mention of monies in the budget. We've discussed with the premier that we'd like to make a proposal to build this centre. And we've discussed with him the figure of $20 million."

So why is there a difference between Ms. Schuman's account of last Thursday's meeting about the centre and his own? After listening to her quotes, Mr. Cocchia said, "By and large that's correct. We spoke with the premier. We've been pushing him on this - that we thought this was a good idea. He's told us we can prepare a proposal for it. We're attempting to put that proposal together. There was a discussion of $20 million."

But that funding hasn't yet been approved? "I'm not privy to what the government's done. I know that, at one point, the number being bandied around was $20 million. Our proposal is for a building that's considerably more than $20 million. And so we're talking about how we fundraise, how we reach out to the community and raise those kinds of funds and if it's possible to do."

Continued Mr. Cocchia, "We're attempting after Thursday with a great deal of success - other than a couple naysayers - to try to pull some cohesion to the autism community to try to get some input in a consultation and a discussion about what could go into an autism centre in British Columbia."

"As people who live with this horrible problem, we think that the community - other people like us - need more supports. And we see this centre as a wonderful way of delivering these supports. We think it's a great idea. So we've reached to the community saying, 'Please participate. Let's pull this up. I'll answer phone calls from Sean and anyone else who wants to call me so we can discuss autism and how we can make things better in this province."

Premier Gordon Campbell has reportedly approached hotel and spa owners Sergio and Wendy Cocchia about developing a promised autism education and research centre. And he's committed $20 million toward building that centre, which was announced in the government's February 2008 throne speech. This, according to an account of a meeting that took place last Thursday at the couple's Century Plaza Hotel and Spa.

In an interview with Public Eye, Autism Community Training Society executive director Clair Schuman - who helped organize that meeting - said Mr. Cocchia told attendees, "The premier - who he knows - had given him a heads-up saying there would be something in the throne speech that would please him. And, of course, he did listen to the throne speech and discovered that there was going to be a centre being built related to autism education and research."

"And, at some point later - post-throne speech - the premier did speak with Sergio and indicated that he wanted Sergio and his wife Wendy to pull together a society and work on a proposal to build the building. And that there would be money committed in the provincial budget for it - not for operating costs but for this building, this centre. And that land would be made available from the province, probably."

Ms. Schuman also said Mr. Cocchia has been hoping to work on the project with Simon Fraser University - which recently received $2 million in provincial and federal government to fund a new autism intervention research chair. "I just spoke with Sergio this morning. And he told me he got a letter and SFU has committed to being involved in this."

Asked for her opinion of the centre, Ms. Schuman said, "We have to do something to increase the capacity in this province - to educate the province and support families. And, if this outside-of-the-box situation can contribute in a positive way, I think it's worth exploring." Although she acknowledged there were three people out of the 50 who attended the meeting "who expressed some concerns about process - where did the money come from, what ministry is involved, is there a competitive process."

Ms. Schuman said Mr. Cocchia asked her society to help organize the meeting as part of consultation process to "test the waters" for the centre. Ms. Cocchia made headlines last year when The Vancouver Sun's Nicholas Read reported she and former education minister Christy Clark wanted to establish "a publicly funded school in Vancouver for children with disabilities." Education Minister Shirley Bond was receptive to that proposal. But B.C. Coalition for People with Disabilities executive director Margaret Birrell and B.C. Coalition for People with Disabilities president Michael Lewis had reservations about the school because they felt "segregating" special needs children would be a mistake.

The following is a complete copy of the invite to the aforementioned meeting.

***

----- Original Message -----
From: Clair Schuman
To: Clair Schuman
Sent: Monday, July 14, 2008 1:16 PM
Subject: FW: An invitation to a meeting re Pacific Autism Family Center

Dear recipient,

To keep the email address you have provided to ACT confidential I am forwarding this invitation on behalf of Sergio and Wendy Cocchia of the Pacific Autism Family Center.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
On behalf of the board of the Pacific Autism Family Center would like to extend an invitation for you to attend an information and discussion session about a new “Autism Center” for B.C.. We are seeking input and assistance from the community on what should be included in such a center.

Where:
Burrard Ballroom
Century Plaza Hotel
1015 Burrard St.,
Vancouver, B.C.,

(parking available in lot on Comox Street)

When;
Thursday July 24,2008
7:00 PM

Please RSVP to info@pacificautismfamily.com

This is a private meeting, if you feel that there is some other person(s) whom should be invited please forward those names to address above for consideration.

Regards

Sergio & Wendy Cocchia

British Columbia Railway Corp.'s president and chief executive officer has been pummelled by the press for making $569,975 to preside over a Crown corporation with 30 full-time equivaliences that missed two of its key performance targets and posted operating losses of $17.3 million in its most recent fiscal year. But at least Kevin Mahoney seems be sharing his largess. Because, according to Elections British Columbia, a contributor with the same name made two $2,990 donations to the provincial Liberals in 2005. Mr. Mahoney didn't return a call requesting comment made last week.

This morning, on Public Eye Radio, past and present Vancouver school trustees Jane Bouey and Eleanor Gregory discuss the provincial government's recent decision to give itself the power to deny services to developmentally disabled adults with IQs over 70. Cariboo Chilcotin Conservation Society presdient Dave Neads discusses the risks associated with British Columbia's new bioenergy strategy. And information and privacy commissioner David Loukidelis talks about why the government can't seem to process freedom of information requests on time. Also on the show: our rabble-rousing panel - Don Anderson, Bob Russell, Alex Tsakumis and Allan Warnke - will debate the week that was in provincial and federal politics. You can listen to Public Eye Radio outside of Victoria by logging into CFAX 1070 between 8:30 and 10:00. If you have a question for one of our guests, you can email us or leave a comment below.

In June, the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. reported "a $3.5-billion proposed class-action lawsuit has been launched on behalf of addicted gamblers who allege they asked to be barred from Ontario's casinos, but were still allowed in. The suit was filed against the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation in Toronto on Tuesday, claiming the corporation did not do enough for those who signed up for 'self-exclusion,' a program that allows people to have themselves banned from casinos so that they can curb their ruinous gambling habits." So, last on Voice of BC we asked Social Development Minister Rich Coleman Whether he thought the British Columbia Lottery Corp. was doing enough to enforce its own responsible gambling program.

His response: "In B.C., it's a combination. It's a combination of the Crown corporation and the gaming policy and enforcement branch. There's a $7 million program for problem gamblers in B.C. There's a 1-800 line. There's information in every washroom and every machine and everything saying, "Know your limit. Play within it." They watch for people that have a difficulty and they try and get them to do self-exclusion - try and identify with their needs within the gaming package."

"We should also recognize, though, that one of the lowest incidents of problem gaming actually takes place in legal establishments," he continued. "One of the highest growths that we're seeing in problem gaming is stuff that's not under the control of the governments in Canada or in British Columbia. Even though, under the criminal code, we have responsibility for the conduct and management of gaming, these Internet sites that you can put your Visa card into from your residence have no control outside of British Columbia. I'd like to see how we could, as a country, figure out how to get some discipline into that because I think that's hurting people."

"I do believe that the conduct and management which sits with the province has to be professionally done. What I said to the corporation and to the policy branch, since I just got this piece of the portfolio back, is, "If there's a study out there that you're hearing about, you follow that. But you make sure you're staying on top of your game too, so that you guys are sharing your information across this country and with other jurisdictions to know if there are any issues that we're missing because I want to be on top of it."

But Minister Coleman isn't just responsible for gaming policy and enforcement. The recent cabinet shuffle also put him in charge of liquor control and licensing. So we asked Minister Coleman whether he would be taking any further action to assist private liquor stores, such as cutting the price they pay to buy booze from the government

"Just so we understand what they do, we don't really have a true wholesale price in the liquor system because the liquor distribution side didn't measure its stores and its distribution separately. So the actual price of the bottle at the store at the wholesale was put into a larger package of dollars," he responded. "Originally there was a 10 percent discount allowed for beer and wine stores. It was taken to 12 percent over a period of time - working with the distribution branch and with our stores and seeing how those things transitioned. We sort of came to the conclusion that about 16 percent was probably the discount that was fair in that marketplace. That was enough so they paid 16 percent of what the liquor store shelf price is; that's their discount. We treat that as their wholesale price. They buy that now and they mark it up accordingly. They can go 5 percent, 10 percent, and if they think they've got a market that's prepared to pay more for a specialty liquor, they can do that, too. So can our liquor stores."

"The discount is where it is. And there's no intention at this point in time to change the discount that is established. I believed, when I left the ministry in 2005 to take on the different portfolio when I was made the minister of forests and range, that 16 percent was the number at that time. We'd started the work. We felt we were pretty close to identifying, 'Is that what the number was?' Over the period of the next year, they finished that off, is what it was."

One of Premier Gordon Campbell's former top advisors says the government needs to "let the reigns go a bit" if it wants British Columbians to support its controversial carbon tax. In an exclusive interview with Public Eye, Louise Comeau said government, instead of doing all the work itself, should be "investing" in community groups that can get people involved with the administration's climate action initiative.

"You have to engage people as individuals - and that's outside of just giving them money," said Ms. Comeau, who was fired as the climate action secretariat's public outreach and strategic engagement director in March. "I have a huge amount of respect for the premier - an enormous amount of respect for the premier. And I think he knows what he's doing. And it would be great if he would let other people know what they were doing so they could help him achieve his vision for the province. I just think it's a government that sometimes is more worried about what might happen if they let reigns go a bit. But, actually, I think it can trust that people will know what to do."

"Something should be done to really start to engage people on the ground so they begin to feel this is their issue - not just Gordon Campbell's issue," continued Ms. Comeau, the former president of the Sierra Club of Canada. "He's done such an amazing job. He truly is a hero for me on this issue. But he needs other people to be heroes too."

"B.C. is so ahead of the country. And it's a good story about how our lifestyles will change in a way that, in the end, we're actually going to like. Because who wants to sit in a commute all the time? Who wants to sit in a house that's drafty and uncomfortable. The government is so on the right track. And they just need to be more confident in what they're doing and reach out a bit more and be more willing to let other people help. And they could build a movement in B.C."

Last month, an Ipsos-Reid Corp. survey found 59 percent of British Columbians are opposed to the province's new carbon tax, which came into effect on July 1.

We've spilled much ink ruminating on BC Railway Co. president and chief executive officer Kevin Mahoney's compensation package. But, as reported today by the Times Colonist's Les Leyne's, Mr. Mahoney isn't the only one earning big bucks at that Crown corporation. All totalled, it's five highest paid executives - including the president and chief executive officer - made $1.6 million. To put that in perspective, that's 40 percent of the corporation's labour costs and 9 percent of its revenue. Mr. Leyne also reported the fact BC Railway executives have previously had discretionary allowances, as well as lunch club and golf memberships. But the corporation's board resolved to discontinue those policies on April 2, 2008.

You might be excused for not noticing the premiers' agreement on labour market mobility at last week's meeting of the Council of the Federation. Scant media attention gets paid to what might seem to be mundane matters of public policy or government pronouncements that actually constitute good news. But it was one of the more important public policy developments in Canada in some time for at least two reasons.

First, it proves the council is more than a photo op and a forum for provincial complaints about Ottawa. It can be a mechanism for developing policies of national scope in areas of provincial jurisdiction. And that's important since, in the absence of a federal government legitimized to do so, it's the only mechanism we have.

Second, it's a small but necessary step toward making the adjustments needed to be more competitive. We live in a world where political and economic alliances are creating larger markets. Those larger markets create more internal competition, forcing everyone to raise their standards - developing the skill sets necessary to both succeed internationally and fend off incursions by foreign competitors.

And that's what's going to happen in Canada as a result of the labour mobility agreement. Every part of our country will now have access to a larger skilled labour pool. But, because, those skills will have to be competitive on a national rather than just a provincial scale, logic dictates they will be improved.

Even though the provinces had been working on this agreement for 13 years, it's worth singling out Premier Gordon Campbell for his leadership on this issue. He has established a reputation as a leader among the premiers, arguably a first for British Columbia. Credit also needs to be directed to a silent partner to this agreement - Prime Minister Stephen Harper, who steadfastly maintained he would be happy to attend a First Ministers' meeting once premiers demonstrated an ability to accomplish something among themselves.

But recent events may have provided some impetus as well. Our free trade discussions with the European Union stalled in May in part because of European concerns about the provincial balkanization of the Canadian economy. Summarizing those concerns, Premier Campbell stated, "it's hard to have free trade with Canada when you don't even have free trade within Canada."

We'd do well to heed the European experience, where a global powerhouse was built by increase the size of a domestic market while eliminating barriers within it. Europeans have a different ethic. Unlike Canadians, they don't take their wealth for granted. They've had to debate how to create it - reaching compromises along the way. It's a continent where four countries, speaking four different languages agreed to build an airplane together - the Airbus - just a generation after being at war with one another. Recognizing an Ontario teaching certificate in Alberta seems rather insignificant by comparison.

But, in Canada, we have no such tradition. Instead, we debate whether to distribute or redistribute by region or class the wealth of the ground we happen to live on. And much of that wealth has come from charging foreign interests rent to exploit those natural resources. But as those resources continue to deplete (and the richer ones are compromised by environmental concerns) we need to be careful we don't act like a nation of landlords, driving slowly in the left lane with no particular destination in mind - oblivious to the object in our rear view mirror that is getting larger. It's the future and it will pass us by.

Bob Russell, a businessman and former civil servant, was chief of staff for the provincial Liberals in Alberta from 1986 to 1989. In 2004, he ran for the federal Liberal nomination in Saanich-Gulf Islands.

Earlier, we exclusively reported the Pacific Carbon Trust expects to be annually purchasing between 600,000 to 900,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emission offsets by 2010 to compensate for the provincial government's greenhouse gas emissions. But what does that mean to taxpayers? Well, in an email to Public Eye, the finance ministry acknowledged the price of those offsets can "vary quite widely." So "full cost information will not be available until the market has been fully tested through a procurement process." Nevertheless, the province earlier announced public sector organizations will initially be required to pay the trust $25 for each tonne of emissions they need offset. "From this revenue," the finance ministry added, it's expected the trust will "recover all costs (offset acquisition, operational expenses, administration overhead) associated with acquiring qualifiying GHG offsets and providing them to PSOs." Which means government could be spending up to $22.5 million each year on carbon credits by 2010.

Back in March, the Times Colonist's Lindsay Kines reported fixing the government's broken Lobbyists Registration Act wasn't "high on the government's priority list." Although Attorney General Wally Oppal did say his deputy had issued a position paper reviewing the legislation. So what does that paper say? Well, according to a heavily blanked-out copy obtained by Public Eye via a freedom of information request, the ministry acknowledged "the 'search' and public reporting features of the registry produce limited information." And "a frequent criticism of the province's legislation is that it does not provide the registrar with powers of...enforcement. Compliance with the Act is reliant on self-disclosure on the part of lobbyists." The government has severed sections of the paper detailing what it may do about those criticisms. Although a half-severed sentence notes "...pacity for the office of the registrar and could heighten public expectations of...forcement activity." The nine-page paper, which was still in draft form at the time Attorney General Oppal spoke with Mr. Kines, is dated December 6, 2007.

BC Railway Co. president and chief executive officer Kevin Mahoney has a base salary of $275,000, receiving $137,500 in incentive plan payments and another $157,475.46 in other benefits. That's a smaller compensation package than his predecessor Bob Phillips, who had a base salary of $350,000 and was eligible to receive a performance bonus of up to $210,000. But it's bigger than Mr. Phillips' predecessor Mark Mudie. According to The Vancouver Sun's Neal Hall, Mr. Mudie was making "a base salary of $270,000 a year and expected a year-end performance bonus of $108,000" at the time he was fired, on August 23, 2002. "BC Rail also paid him $900 a month car allowance and membership at the Terminal City Club as part of his benefits package. In a court affidavit, he said he was accustomed to making $400,000 a year in salary and benefits."

The Campbell administration's Pacific Carbon Trust expects to be annually purchasing between 600,000 to 900,000 tonnes of carbon offsets by 2010 to compensate for the provincial government's greenhouse gas emissions. And the trust is looking for organizations to buy those offsets from. This, according to a document quietly posted on BC Bid this past Friday. The trust hasn't said what price it will pay for those offsets - which must be "credible" and "BC-based." But, according to May 2008 report on the voluntary carbon market by Ecosystem Marketplace and New Carbon Finance, the range of prices for offsets "again showed huge variation" in 2007 - ranging from $1.80 and $300.27 per tonne.

The government has committed to becoming carbon neutral by 2010. As part of that commitment, public sector organizations must purchase offsets if they can't reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. The following is a complete copy of the aforementioned document.

***

Summary Details:

The Pacific Carbon Trust (PCT) is requesting information from interested parties for the supply of qualifying greenhouse gas (GHG) offsets. This RFI is intended to gather information that could assist PCT in the development of a future procurement process.

Overview

The Province of British Columbia has initiated a comprehensive Climate Action Plan. This Plan includes a legislated requirement for public sector organizations (PSOs) to become carbon neutral in their operations. To achieve this aim, PSOs will be required to take action to reduce their GHG emissions. For emissions that cannot be reduced, PSOs must apply GHG offsets, in order to bring their carbon balance to zero net emissions. PSOs are to become carbon neutral by 2010.

PCT is a newly established Crown agency that has been given the mandate to acquire BC-based qualifying GHG offsets on behalf of PSOs. PCT will also be securing other public sector clients and may, over time, become a supplier of offsets to the voluntary market.

By 2010, PCT expects to acquire annually between 600,000 and 900,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide-equivalent (CO2e) offsets. In the near term, PCT will acquire a smaller volume of offsets to compensate for core government travel.

At this time, PCT is exploring the possibility of acquiring most of the required offsets from organizations, both for-profit and not-for-profit, that can provide an ongoing supply of credible, BC-based GHG offsets that meet provincial eligibility criteria.

PCT will only acquire offsets that are based in BC and meet defined eligibility criteria. The BC Ministry of Environment has issued an "Emission Offsets Regulations under the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Targets Act - Policy Intentions Paper for Consultation" that contains the proposed criteria.

This RFI is the first step in a process that will lead to the acquisition of GHG offsets by PCT. The purpose of this first step is three-fold:

- To identify the level of interest in the opportunity;

- To identify the potential capacity of organizations to supply the quantity of offsets needed by PCT; and

- To seek advice from organizations on how best to structure subsequent procurement processes and resulting contractual arrangements.

Respondents should note that this Request for Information is not a Request for Proposals or a formal tender call. Receipt of responses in relation to this Request for Information will not constitute a contract to purchases goods or services. No respondent shall acquire any legal rights or privileges whatsoever in relation to the project, or portion
thereof, as a result of this Request for Information.

Earlier, we reported on how the Pacific Northwest Economic Region has been restricting access to its annual summit - this, despite a claim by British Columbia's then minister of state for intergovernmental relations John Van Dongen that it would be "open to the public." And here's another example: according to the summit's program, there will be three invitation-only roundtables - including one on border issues moderated by Minister Van Dongen, the province's new solicitor general. Fancy that! The following is a complete copy of the descriptions of those roundtables.

Energy Horizons Roundtable: (Invitation Only Session) - Salon D
Mapping the region’s energy future – Invitation Only session with the
Region’s Energy Ministers, Legislative Energy Chairs and Energy Horizon Partners.
Moderator:
Jeff Morris - Director, Energy Horizons, LLC

Innovation: Vice Presidents of Research Roundtable (Invitation Only) - Cowichan Room, 2nd Level Convention Centre
British Columbia’s Ministry of Advanced Education and PNWER invites VP’s of Research, representing research universities in the PNWER region and Saskatchewan to come together to explore common interests, regional research competencies and opportunities for collaboration during the PNWER Annual Summit.
Moderator:
Don Avison - President, University Presidents’ Council of British Columbia
Hosted by:
British Columbia Ministry of Technology, Trade and Economic Development

Border Issues: Roundtable Discussion on 2010 Winter Games, Border Issues and the Pacific Gateway (Invitation Only) - Stanley Park Ballroom 3, 2nd Level Convention Centre
Featuring:
Hon. James Moore - Secretary of State for Asia-Pacific Gateway, 2010 Olympics and Official Languages
Moderator:
Hon. John van Dongen - Minister of Public Safety, Solicitor General

Back in May, the ministry of children and family development stated it "publicly reports on 17 performance measures." At the time, only 15 of those measures were available - with two scheduled for inclusion in its forthcoming annual service plan report. But it seems those two new measurements aren't yet ready to make their big appearance. According to that annual report, which was released last week, the ministry will now be monitoring whether its regional governance models "align with unique community-based strengths, priorities and challenges." And it will be making sure its employees "are fully engaged, healthy and contributing to transformation in their work environment." But the indicators for those performance measures are still "under development."

Earlier, we reported BC Railway Co. chief executive officer Kevin Mahoney was paid handsomely for his services during the Crown corporation's most recent fiscal year - receiving $569,975 in salary and benefits. But, despite that compensation package, BC Railway missed two of its key performance measures. As part of its commitment to "wind down or exit" the corporation's assets, BC Railway committed to transfer 95 of its property titles in 2007 and gain $75.4 million from the disposal of that property. Instead, the corporation transferred just 20 titles and gained $19.8 million. All but three of BC Railway's performance measures concern monitoring and reporting out on the Crown corporation's lease agreements.

Last week, we gave a number of reasons why it wasn't apt to justify BC Railway Co. president and chief executive officer Kevin Mahoney's $569,975 compensation package by comparing him to Canadian Pacific Railway Co. president and chief executive officer Fred Green. After all, Canadian Pacific, unlike BC Railway, is a functioning railway company with revenues 259 times higher than the Crown corporation. And here's another reason such a comparison is unwarranted: the corporation has 30 full-time equivalencies whereas Canadian Pacific has 15,382 or 513 times more. Fancy that!

This morning, on Public Eye Radio, provincial New Democrat citizens' services critic Katrine Conroy shares her thoughts on the government's most recent outsourcing initiative. No One Is Illegal organizer Harsha Walia discusses why she's going to be protesting the Pacific Northwest Economic Region's annual summit. And our rabble-rousing panel - Don Anderson, Bob Russell, Alex Tsakumis and Allan Warnke - will debate the week that was in provincial and federal politics. You can listen to Public Eye Radio outside of Victoria by logging into CFAX 1070 between 8:30 and 10:00. If you have a question for one of our guests, you can email us or leave a comment below.

The British Columbia Government and Service Employees Union was one of Carole James's biggest backers during the 2003 provincial New Democrat leadership, with its staff fund contributing $4,600 to her campaign. And Ms. James received a personal endorsement and $500 donation from union president George Heyman. But the New Democrats are still ten percentage points behind the Liberals according to the latest Mustel Research Group Ltd. poll. So, last night on Voice of BC, we asked Mr. Heyman, "Five years after, how do you think your investment is doing?"

His response: "Well, I supported Carole James for leader of the New Democratic Party because I thought she had a good, solid history as a community activist, a lot of experience as head of the B.C. School Trustees Association. But I also thought she was a person of great integrity and great sincerity, somebody who was honest and who you could trust. I thought that put up on a podium with the premier, with Gordon Campbell, she was the person who could form the starkest contrast in terms of the style of politics."

"This was a period, you'll remember, that was very, very polarized - 77 to 2 in the legislature, extreme actions, demonstrations on a weekly basis and British Columbians were getting tired of it. Carole James led the New Democratic Party from two seats to three seats and then 33 seats, came very close to winning the election and I think is seen by British Columbians as a credible leader - as somebody with integrity. I'm very happy with the result of the energy that I personally put into trying to help Carole James become the New Democratic Party leader."

BC Railway Co. may have leased its tracks to Canadian National Railway Co. and ceased its freight operations. But, according to executive compensation figures released today by the Campbell administration, BC Railway's president and chief executive officer Kevin Mahoney - who manages a corporation that had revenues of $18.2 million for the year ended December 31, 2007 - is the fourth highest paid public sector employee, receiving $569,975 in salary and benefits. In an apparent attempt to justify that compensation package, a provincial government backgrounder compared his salary to Canadian Pacific Railway Co. president and chief executive officer Fred Green, who earns $2.9 million and manages a corporation that had revenues of $4.7 billion over the same time period.

Asked about the matter, Finance Minister Colin Hansen said, "BC Rail still has substantial operations and it is a very important Crown corporation for the province. They continue to own the assets of the rail and rail right-of-ways of British Columbia. And they also continue to own some very significant and strategic properties in the province - properties that are going to be critical to the economic development in this province and the Gateway Initiative. So I think we need to make sure that organization is very competently managed given the importance of that organization to the future of the province."

But aren't those rail assets now being managed by Canadian National? "BC Rail continues to actively manage very significant assets in the province - real estate assets that are very critical to our port initiative, our rail initiative and to economic development generally," Minister Hansen responded. Those unleased assets are valued at $60.8 million - including property under construction. By comparison, Canadian Pacific has $13.4 billion in assets.

Mr. Mahoney is just one of seven executives who were paid out more than $500,000 by taxpayers during the most recent fiscal year. And he's just one of 233 who were paid out more than $100,000.

"Quite frankly, I think when you start talking about incomes in excesses of $500,000 a year, I certainly don't relate to that," Minister Hansen commented. "I think the average British Columbians would find that is much higher than they would have expected. But I think when you compare our compensation for senior executives with other parts of Canada, we - in fact - are not the leaders. In fact, we're the middle of the pack when it comes to executive compensation based on the information we know from other jurisdictions."

It's been four months since the Campbell administration fired former Sierra Club of Canada president Louise Comeau, the outreach and strategic engagement director for the government's embattled climate action initiative. That post, according to the government's directory, remains vacant. This, despite the fact government launched a search to find a replacement for Ms. Comeau. But the climate action secretariat is now hiring an executive project director who will be "responsible for directing, implementing and coordinating across government the integration, delivery, and communication of the Climate Action Plan, the Green Cities initiative and the Water Plan - where these three plans overlap." The following is a complete copy of that posting.

Executive Project Director
Full-Time

Climate Action Secretariat
Victoria

Opportunity:

The BC Climate Action Secretariat was created as the central government agency responsible for meeting the province's greenhouse gas reduction targets by coordinating climate action activities across government and with stakeholders. The Secretariat has a mandate to ensure an innovative, coordinated and effective approach to climate action in British Columbia.

The Executive Project Director is responsible for directing, implementing and coordinating across government the integration, delivery, and communication of the Climate Action Plan, the Green Cities initiative and the Water Plan - where these three plans overlap. The three initiatives overlap primarily with respect to how we design our communities, and how we help people make different choices.

The Executive Project Director maintains an understanding of the challenges and complexities of the issues, possesses a record of success as a leader who has established goals, accomplished change, developed teams, promoted innovation, built relationships, solved problems, and ensured accountability.

Your work history will include a number of years experience working in climate change / action, green development, smart growth, planning, and regulation of land use activities, and considerable project management and contract management experience, as well as a record of developing plans, policies and/or regulations. Experience in mediation and negotiation and knowledge of the public sector and government systems and processes, and experience promoting ideas and initiatives, presenting information and providing training are all essential to this role.

A role description and a listing of qualifications is attached. For information on climate change and the Climate Action Plan visit http://www.livesmartbc.ca/plan/index.html

To express an interest in this opportunity, please submit application materials to LC@gov.bc.ca by August 1, 2008. Your interest is appreciated.

Competition: Executive Project Director, Climate Action Secretariat
Closing Date: 2008-08-01