{"id":433,"date":"2022-08-29T14:01:37","date_gmt":"2022-08-29T18:01:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/?page_id=433"},"modified":"2022-09-02T12:46:18","modified_gmt":"2022-09-02T16:46:18","slug":"stormwater-rain-tax","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/stormwater-rain-tax\/","title":{"rendered":"Stormwater &#8220;Rain&#8221; Tax"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-page\" data-elementor-id=\"433\" class=\"elementor elementor-433\" data-elementor-post-type=\"page\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-6f777bbd elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"6f777bbd\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-522a6b60\" data-id=\"522a6b60\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-d264e00 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"d264e00\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<style>\/*! elementor - v3.21.0 - 25-04-2024 *\/\n.elementor-heading-title{padding:0;margin:0;line-height:1}.elementor-widget-heading .elementor-heading-title[class*=elementor-size-]>a{color:inherit;font-size:inherit;line-height:inherit}.elementor-widget-heading .elementor-heading-title.elementor-size-small{font-size:15px}.elementor-widget-heading .elementor-heading-title.elementor-size-medium{font-size:19px}.elementor-widget-heading .elementor-heading-title.elementor-size-large{font-size:29px}.elementor-widget-heading .elementor-heading-title.elementor-size-xl{font-size:39px}.elementor-widget-heading .elementor-heading-title.elementor-size-xxl{font-size:59px}<\/style><h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Elect Bob Masaro<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-60d82116 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"60d82116\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Councillor - Osgoode Ward 20<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-77a775b elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"77a775b\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-66 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-688ac231\" data-id=\"688ac231\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-1d4d21d7 elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"1d4d21d7\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<style>\/*! elementor - v3.21.0 - 25-04-2024 *\/\n.elementor-column .elementor-spacer-inner{height:var(--spacer-size)}.e-con{--container-widget-width:100%}.e-con-inner>.elementor-widget-spacer,.e-con>.elementor-widget-spacer{width:var(--container-widget-width,var(--spacer-size));--align-self:var(--container-widget-align-self,initial);--flex-shrink:0}.e-con-inner>.elementor-widget-spacer>.elementor-widget-container,.e-con>.elementor-widget-spacer>.elementor-widget-container{height:100%;width:100%}.e-con-inner>.elementor-widget-spacer>.elementor-widget-container>.elementor-spacer,.e-con>.elementor-widget-spacer>.elementor-widget-container>.elementor-spacer{height:100%}.e-con-inner>.elementor-widget-spacer>.elementor-widget-container>.elementor-spacer>.elementor-spacer-inner,.e-con>.elementor-widget-spacer>.elementor-widget-container>.elementor-spacer>.elementor-spacer-inner{height:var(--container-widget-height,var(--spacer-size))}.e-con-inner>.elementor-widget-spacer.elementor-widget-empty,.e-con>.elementor-widget-spacer.elementor-widget-empty{position:relative;min-height:22px;min-width:22px}.e-con-inner>.elementor-widget-spacer.elementor-widget-empty .elementor-widget-empty-icon,.e-con>.elementor-widget-spacer.elementor-widget-empty .elementor-widget-empty-icon{position:absolute;top:0;bottom:0;left:0;right:0;margin:auto;padding:0;width:22px;height:22px}<\/style>\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6e15e1a1 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"6e15e1a1\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<h1 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Robert P. Masaro, B.A.(Hons.), B.Ed.\n<\/h1>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-18aa44b1 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"18aa44b1\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<h3 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">For Fiscal Accountability<\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-c2664f9 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"c2664f9\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Election Date: October 24, 2022<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cef9c3f elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"cef9c3f\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6b1f2fdf elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"6b1f2fdf\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\"><a href=\"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/stormwater-rain-tax\/\">PETITION: To REPEAL STORMWATER \"RAIN\" TAX\n<\/a><\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-22818e0d elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"22818e0d\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\"><a href=\"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/term-limits\/\">PETITION: TERM LIMITS FOR ELECTED MUNICIPAL OFFICIALS \n<\/a><\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-33 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-34f18051\" data-id=\"34f18051\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-71c85e6c elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"71c85e6c\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<style>\/*! elementor - v3.21.0 - 25-04-2024 *\/\n.elementor-widget-image{text-align:center}.elementor-widget-image a{display:inline-block}.elementor-widget-image a img[src$=\".svg\"]{width:48px}.elementor-widget-image img{vertical-align:middle;display:inline-block}<\/style>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"200\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/S51015CA200127_p_10-200x300.jpg\" class=\"attachment-medium size-medium wp-image-73\" alt=\"Candidate Bob Masaro\" srcset=\"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/S51015CA200127_p_10-200x300.jpg 200w, https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/S51015CA200127_p_10-682x1024.jpg 682w, https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/S51015CA200127_p_10-700x1050.jpg 700w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-80050cb elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"80050cb\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-1357c7ed\" data-id=\"1357c7ed\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-7a10b403 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"7a10b403\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Election Platform \u2013 Major Issues in 2022:<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-9e81b3b elementor-nav-menu__align-center elementor-nav-menu--dropdown-tablet elementor-nav-menu__text-align-aside elementor-widget elementor-widget-nav-menu\" data-id=\"9e81b3b\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-settings=\"{&quot;submenu_icon&quot;:{&quot;value&quot;:&quot;&lt;i class=\\&quot;fas fa-bars\\&quot;&gt;&lt;\\\/i&gt;&quot;,&quot;library&quot;:&quot;fa-solid&quot;},&quot;layout&quot;:&quot;horizontal&quot;}\" data-widget_type=\"nav-menu.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<link rel=\"stylesheet\" href=\"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/wp-content\/plugins\/elementor-pro\/assets\/css\/widget-nav-menu.min.css\">\t\t\t<nav class=\"elementor-nav-menu--main elementor-nav-menu__container elementor-nav-menu--layout-horizontal e--pointer-underline e--animation-fade\">\n\t\t\t\t<ul id=\"menu-1-9e81b3b\" class=\"elementor-nav-menu\"><li class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-home menu-item-414\"><a href=\"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/\" class=\"elementor-item\">Taxes:<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-466\"><a href=\"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/transit-lrt\/\" class=\"elementor-item\">Transit \u2013 LRT<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-465\"><a href=\"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/tewin-development\/\" class=\"elementor-item\">Tewin Development<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-464\"><a href=\"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/infrastructure-roads\/\" class=\"elementor-item\">Infrastructure &#038; Roads<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-463\"><a href=\"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/community-services-protection\/\" class=\"elementor-item\">Community Services &#038; Protection<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-462\"><a href=\"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/additional-local-supports\/\" class=\"elementor-item\">Additional Local Supports<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-677\"><a href=\"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/incumbents-again\/\" class=\"elementor-item\">Incumbents \u2026 AGAIN!<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-660\"><a href=\"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/2014-election-platform\/\" class=\"elementor-item\">2014 Election Platform<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\t\t\t<\/nav>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<nav class=\"elementor-nav-menu--dropdown elementor-nav-menu__container\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n\t\t\t\t<ul id=\"menu-2-9e81b3b\" class=\"elementor-nav-menu\"><li class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-home menu-item-414\"><a href=\"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/\" class=\"elementor-item\" tabindex=\"-1\">Taxes:<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-466\"><a href=\"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/transit-lrt\/\" class=\"elementor-item\" tabindex=\"-1\">Transit \u2013 LRT<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-465\"><a href=\"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/tewin-development\/\" class=\"elementor-item\" tabindex=\"-1\">Tewin Development<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-464\"><a href=\"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/infrastructure-roads\/\" class=\"elementor-item\" tabindex=\"-1\">Infrastructure &#038; Roads<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-463\"><a href=\"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/community-services-protection\/\" class=\"elementor-item\" tabindex=\"-1\">Community Services &#038; Protection<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-462\"><a href=\"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/additional-local-supports\/\" class=\"elementor-item\" tabindex=\"-1\">Additional Local Supports<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-677\"><a href=\"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/incumbents-again\/\" class=\"elementor-item\" tabindex=\"-1\">Incumbents \u2026 AGAIN!<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-660\"><a href=\"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/2014-election-platform\/\" class=\"elementor-item\" tabindex=\"-1\">2014 Election Platform<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\t\t\t<\/nav>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-1551f5c elementor-section-full_width elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"1551f5c\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-86d4937\" data-id=\"86d4937\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-f9860a3 elementor-align-center elementor-widget elementor-widget-embedpress_pdf\" data-id=\"f9860a3\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"embedpress_pdf.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t    <div class=\"embedpress-document-embed ep-doc-7b1a3066f2f7db8bc12e1d0d842829a6 ose-document emebedpress-unit-percent \" data-thememode=\"default\" data-customcolor=\"\" data-toolbar=\"yes\" data-toolbar-position=\"top\" data-open=\"no\" data-presentation-mode=\"yes\" data-download=\"yes\" data-copy=\"yes\" data-rotate=\"yes\" data-details=\"yes\" data-id=\"embedpress-pdf-f9860a3\" style=\" max-width:100%; display: inline-block\">\n        \n        \n                <div >\n                \n                    <div id=\"ep-elementor-content-f9860a3\" class=\"ep-elementor-content   ep-percentage-width   ep-content-protection-disabled\">\n                        <div id=\"f9860a3\" class=\"ep-embed-content-wraper\">\n                            <div><iframe title=\"PETITION &#8211; RAIN TAX\" class=\"embedpress-embed-document-pdf embedpress-pdf-f9860a3\" style=\"width: 100%!important;height: 600px;; max-width:100%; display: inline-block\" src=\"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/wp-admin\/admin-ajax.php?action=get_viewer&#038;file=https%3A%2F%2Fbobmasaro.ca%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2022%2F08%2FPETITION-RAIN-TAX.pdf#key=dGhlbWVNb2RlPWRlZmF1bHQmdG9vbGJhcj10cnVlJnBvc2l0aW9uPXRvcCZwcmVzZW50YXRpb249dHJ1ZSZkb3dubG9hZD10cnVlJmNvcHlfdGV4dD10cnVlJmFkZF90ZXh0PXRydWUmZHJhdz10cnVlJnBkZl9yb3RhdGlvbj10cnVlJnBkZl9kZXRhaWxzPXRydWU=&#038;zoom=auto\" class=\"embedpress-embed-document-pdf embedpress-pdf-f9860a3\" data-emid=\"embedpress-pdf-f9860a3\" https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/PETITION-RAIN-TAX.pdf=\"\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe><\/div>                        <\/div>\n                    <\/div>\n                                    <\/div>\n            \n    <\/div>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-79b2537c elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"79b2537c\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-58e03d0f\" data-id=\"58e03d0f\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-23f63fa3 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"23f63fa3\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<style>\/*! elementor - v3.21.0 - 25-04-2024 *\/\n.elementor-widget-text-editor.elementor-drop-cap-view-stacked .elementor-drop-cap{background-color:#69727d;color:#fff}.elementor-widget-text-editor.elementor-drop-cap-view-framed .elementor-drop-cap{color:#69727d;border:3px solid;background-color:transparent}.elementor-widget-text-editor:not(.elementor-drop-cap-view-default) .elementor-drop-cap{margin-top:8px}.elementor-widget-text-editor:not(.elementor-drop-cap-view-default) .elementor-drop-cap-letter{width:1em;height:1em}.elementor-widget-text-editor .elementor-drop-cap{float:left;text-align:center;line-height:1;font-size:50px}.elementor-widget-text-editor .elementor-drop-cap-letter{display:inline-block}<\/style>\t\t\t\t<p><!-- wp:heading {\"textAlign\":\"center\",\"level\":3} --><\/p>\n<h3 class=\"has-text-align-center\">The Stormwater (Rain) Tax<\/h3>\n<p><!-- \/wp:heading --><\/p>\n<p><!-- wp:paragraph --><\/p>\n<p>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Historically, under the statutes of the Province of Ontario the Drainage Act provided a democratic procedure for the construction, improvement and maintenance of drainage works. Therefore, there were long established drainage laws and Common Law rights that provided the framework for the improvements of municipal drains on agricultural lands.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 After amalgamation and for almost two decades the City of Ottawa performed maintenance of culverts and drainage works on rural lands using infrastructure or road tax money derived within the existing tax structure. However, in 2016, the City falsely attempted to tell rural property owners that we somehow had not been paying a tax towards culverts and ditches. In essence, they were pretending to transfer much of the costs of stormwater management to the rural areas due to their mismanagement and neglect of our municipal drains.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The City of Ottawa held seven public &#8220;consultations&#8221; across the rural communities in March and April of 2016. I attended the public consultation at the Metcalfe Community Center on April 2nd, 2016. There, at the front of the room, with Dixon Ward and other members of City staff was Councillor George Darouze wearing a tee-shirt with a picture of a rain drop and a line through it. During the course of this meeting I was the person who stood up and asked Mr. Darouze if he would vote yes or no for the rain tax. In front of a packed room of people he said he would vote &#8220;<strong><u>no<\/u>&#8220;<\/strong> to the tax. Later that year <strong><u>Council voted unanimously for the tax<\/u><\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 How can George Darouze possibly say he is representing us when he votes for something that almost all of his constituents are against? In fact, I read an article around that time where George Darouze said they were out to <strong><u>sell the tax to citizens<\/u><\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p><!-- \/wp:paragraph --><\/p>\n<p><!-- wp:paragraph --><\/p>\n<p>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 This total lack of understanding of our needs was further magnified in 2017. City staff was recommending that the amount charged for the stormwater tax be altered and increased to 13%. Instead, Council decide to decrease the increase to 5%. Unbelievably, George Darouze voted <strong><u>against<\/u><\/strong> reducing the rate to 5%.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 It was at that point that it was becoming apparent that the City of Ottawa was being disingenuous with the intent of the stormwater tax as evident by the altering of amounts they wanted to charge. In fact, over time, it has become increasing obvious that the City of Ottawa has been using this tax money as a <strong><u>cash cow<\/u><\/strong> for various pet projects including Elgin Street and Montreal road reconstruction projects.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Furthermore, the misrepresentation contained in this issue became even more evident in our area when we received a letter regarding the Buckles Municipal Drain. I went to the meeting on October 17th, 2019 for the presentation by the Drainage engineer, George Darouze and others. They were indicating that we may be assessed costs for any improvements that may be required to the drainage in the area. After some time in the meeting I stood up and made the following statement, &#8220;I thought we had a stormwater rain tax for this?&#8221; The people at the front had no clear response for this statement. (As an aside, nothing has been done nor anything said since!)<\/p>\n<p><!-- \/wp:paragraph --><\/p>\n<p><!-- wp:paragraph --><\/p>\n<p>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Due to my disappointment with this meeting and how the information and consultations were manipulated by the City, I decided to do further research on this issue. As a result, I created the Petition to <strong><u>Repeal<\/u><\/strong> the Stormwater (Rain) tax to make the City finally aware of our extreme <strong><u>outrage<\/u><\/strong> regarding this Tax.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><!-- \/wp:paragraph --><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-819ff16 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"819ff16\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>If you are interested in signing, please call: (613) 826-0521 and leave a message or e-mail:\u00a0<a href=\"mailto:Bob.Masaro@gmail.com\">Bob.Masaro@gmail.com<\/a><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Elect Bob Masaro Councillor &#8211; Osgoode Ward 20 Robert P. Masaro, B.A.(Hons.), B.Ed. For Fiscal Accountability Election Date: October 24, 2022 PETITION: To REPEAL STORMWATER &#8220;RAIN&#8221; TAX PETITION: TERM LIMITS FOR ELECTED MUNICIPAL OFFICIALS Election Platform \u2013 Major Issues in 2022: The Stormwater (Rain) Tax \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Historically, under the statutes &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"template-full-width.php","meta":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/433"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=433"}],"version-history":[{"count":60,"href":"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/433\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":651,"href":"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/433\/revisions\/651"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bobmasaro.ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=433"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}