Following are the board highlights from the Nov. 16 Cariboo Regional District (CRD) meeting:
Library fine hike
Trustees approved an increase in the library system's processing fee for damaged or lost materials from $3 to $5 per item.
A $5 fine per item for inter-library loans that are not picked up, and a $1 fine per item for CRD Library items on hold that are not picked up was also approved.
LBVFD Fire Hall funds
Trustees granted an allocation of $20,000 in Community Works Funding for the Lone Butte Volunteer Fire Department Fire Hall to complete energy-efficiency projects. These will include a heating retrofit and some other ancillary upgrades.
Horse Lake water system
The CRD Security Issuing (Horse Lake Water System) Bylaw #4786, 2012 was adopted by the board.
It authorizes the regional district to borrow the entire remaining amount of $119,167 from the Municipal Finance Authority for the water system. Repayment of the loan has been included in the 2013 Financial Plan.
The total amount of authorized borrowing is $323,959, which was approved by the electors in a 2008 petition.
The board also approved a 43 per cent ($8,972) increase for the Horse Lake Water System in the 2013 Financial Plan.
Budget meetings
The second of two finance budget meetings took place on Nov. 15.
The proposed 2013 budgets and business plans will receive some small adjustments before being presented to the board for adoption at the Dec. 14 meeting.
The provisional budget will then be presented to CRD residents in 2013 through three sub-regional consultation meetings. One of these will be held in 100 Mile House on Jan. 30.
Further information, including times and location, will be announced.
Town-hall meetings
The CRD's traditional town-hall meetings for 2013 will now be held at the beginning of the budgeting process in September and October in each of the electoral areas and municipalities.
Northern Development Initiative Trust
Janine North, Northern Development Initiative Trust (NDI) chief executive officer, appeared before the directors to provide an update on NDI programs.
NDI is looking at amalgamating segregated accounts and creating a regional combined account for the Cariboo-Chilcotin. This change would maximize the amount of funding available to rural communities.
The update also included an overview of new programs, including a local government internship initiative. The second program would be a downtown improvement program.
Further information about the NDI funding programs is available online at www.northerndevelopment.bc.ca.