Islands Trust Governance
Governance is the act of governing, or exercising decision-rights for a given area of responsibility. "Governance" is what a "government" does.
Islands Trust Legislative Structure
Internal Governance Reviews
Since the Islands Trust Act was passed in 1974, the structure of the governing bodies within the Islands Trust and the way they govern have changed several times. In an effort to make continuous improvements, the Islands Trust Council has undertaken both major and minor reviews of various aspects of its governance. Topics reviewed over the past several years have included political representation, election administration, meeting procedures, corporate services, local planning services and bylaw enforcement services. In some cases, Trust Council's reviews have resulted in requests to the provincial government to amend the Islands Trust Act or to make other changes to provincial legislation and regulations. Other reviews have resulted in changes to the Islands Trust's internal bylaws, policies, procedures, staffing or budget allocations.
In 2003 the Islands Trust undertook a Governance Renewal Initiative.
The principles guiding the review of governance options were:
- greater equity for tax payers while ensuring the legislated object is not at risk;
- improved organizational self-sufficiency that ensures sustainability of the mandate;
- enhanced local autonomy within a shared vision for the Trust Area; and
- planning tools to assert land use values while promoting voluntary stewardship.
The documents from that initiative are:
In 2006 the Islands Trust Council voted to create a Governance Task Force to address a number of governance issues of concern to Salt Spring Island and some of the larger island communities. The task force focused on political representation and other improvements that could be achieved during the 2005-2008 term of office. In 2007, the public consultation was complete and resulted in a Governance Review Report. Taking the results into account, the Islands Trust asked the Province to amend the Islands Trust Act to enable Salt Spring Island to have four locally-elected trustees. The Honourable Ida Chong, then Minister of Community Services proposed that the matter be determined by referendum in 2008. The increased level of representation was opposed by 57% of the voters.
The Islands Trust has also undertaken a number of reviews to improve its internal operations. Some of these studies include:
Community Governance Reviews
In 1989, the Islands Trust Act was amended to permit the formation of municipalities within the Islands Trust Area. Since then, some communities in the Islands Trust Area have considered and voted on changes to local governance structure. Following incorporation review studies, referenda have been held on Bowen, Gabriola and Salt Spring islands to determine whether municipal incorporation should occur. The results of these referenda are as follows:
- 1991 - Bowen Island Incorporation Referendum - Failed
- 1999 - Bowen Island Incorporation Referendum - Passed (supported by 60%)
- 2002 - Salt Spring Incorporation Referendum - Failed (opposed by 70%)
- 2004 - Gabriola Incorporation Referendum - Failed (opposed by 87%)
In 2000, the Islands Trust commissioned a study to explore the impacts on its operations if one or more islands chose municipal incorporation.
Some citizens in the Islands Trust Area continue to explore the idea of municipal incorporation and occasionally invite Islands Trust staff to discuss the topic at public meetings. Slides used at these presentations can be viewed here:
For more information, or to share your ideas about Islands Trust governance, please contact CAO Linda Adams.
Contact Information
Chief Administrative Officer
(250) 405-5160
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