Notes & News
BC and WA Accountants Working Together to Protect the Public
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BC Budget Events
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n February 17, CPABC’s Budget Response Team, led by president
& CEO Richard Rees, CPA, FCA, attended the budget lock-up in
Victoria, and received an embargoed copy of the provincial budget
for the upcoming fiscal year. Overall, the provincial budget holds the
line on spending, promises operating debt repayment that will bring
down BC’s debt-to-GDP ratio, and commits to strengthening the key
infrastructure development that is important to the province’s productivity and competitiveness.
Speaking on behalf of CPABC, Richard said he was pleased to see
Finance Minister Mike de Jong continuing to uphold his commitment
to balancing the books and generating modest budget surpluses over
the next three years. With the surpluses anticipated, the government
should be able to pay down the province’s direct operating debt by
more than 50% over the next three years, lowering it to $4.8 billion. In
turn, this would bring the debt- Ѽ