Elected Rural Municipality (RM) councilors who are in arrears on their property taxes should not be eligible to serve, according to delegates attending the Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities (SARM) conference in Regina March 15-17.
A resolution calling on the provincial government to amend the Municipalities Act to allow the removal of any RM councillor who falls into arrears, and have their seat declared vacant, was one of 20 resolutions adopted at the convention.
The resolution was introduced by the RM of Bayne Number 371. The movers of the resolution stated that since RM council members are leaders in the communities, and are responsible for managing municipal funds and making decisions in the best interests of their constituents, they should set a positive example.
SARM delegates passed nearly two dozen resolutions dealing with a range of issues. They include:
* calling on the federal government to ensure that railway companies maintain all railway crossings without charging private land and business owners;
* urging the provincial government to fund improvements to roads that access highway-bordered lands to help keep large, slow-moving farm equipment off the highways;
* asking the provincial government to change hunting regulations covering mule deer and moose to reduce damage to crops and cut down on collisions involving wildlife;
* requesting the provincial government to implement a $7,500 cap on the cost of installation of SaskEnergy natural gas services to rural residents;
* urging the province to invest in another oil upgrader;
* lobbying the provincial and federal governments to provide funds to help municipalities cover the cost of cleaning up derelict properties.