A commitment to universal access to government services was reaffirmed at Revelstoke’s Aug. 27 council meeting.
Directors were unanimous in reaffirming the council’s membership in a Regional Accessibility Advisory Committee funding agreement with the Columbia Shuswap Regional District, Town of Golden, District of Sicamous and City of Salmon in 2023.
In her update to council, Cindy Floyd, Director of Corporate Services, reminded councillors that in June 2021, the the province passed legislation through the Accessible British Columbia Act, followed by the Accessible British Columbia Regulation on Sept.1, 2022,
The legislation is aimed at making public sector organizations more accessible and inclusive by establishing a framework for governments and organizations to work with people with disabilities and the broader community to identify, remove and prevent barriers to accessibility.
A barrier is defined as “anything that hinders the full and equal participation in society of a person with an impairment.”
According to the act, barriers can be caused by environments, attitudes, practices, policies, information, communications or technologies.
Floyd noted that other jurisdictions in the province have also taken a regional approach.
“This approach allows local governments to share resources, gather the best committee members from a limited pool of potential candidates, and for efficiency as much of the work will be similar for municipalities and regional districts,” she wrote. “Note that without exception, the committees exist at a staff level only, given that this is an administrative-oriented legislative requirement.”
The vision of the committee is to assist and advise the regional participants to identify, remove, and prevent barriers to individuals in or interacting with the regional participants in accordance with the Accessible British Columbia Act.
By joining the committee, Revelstoke Council commits to inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility and acknowledges the importance of the disability community's lived experience.
Revelstoke’s role will also include providing input and direction to the regional participants on the development of a combined regional accessibility plan and creating a mechanism for public feedback on accessibility in accordance with the Accessible British Columbia Act.
“To achieve this objective, the Regional Accessibility Advisory Committee will undertake the following activities,” wrote Floyd – advise in the development of and updates to its plan; advise council as it establishes priorities, develops policies and plans, and implements programs related to accessibility.
The city will also assist in identifying barriers related to civic infrastructure including local government services and online resources and advise on a process for receiving comments from the public on the accessibility plan(s) and barriers to individuals in or interacting with the organization.
The report also lays out the parameters of the volunteer committee as well as expectations, rules and the role CSRD staff will play by supporting the committee with meeting coordination and managing the agenda. minute taking and distribution of the minutes,
“The committee will recognize that the committee’s comments and recommendations represent one of a series of decision-making processes that enable members of the municipal councils and regional district board to fully understand the issues under review, including their policy and budget consequences and potential impact on the general public,” Floyd noted.
Chief Administrative Officer Evan Parliament reiterated the reason for establishing the regional committee.
“We’re taking a regional approach to this legislation rather than dealing with it individually for obvious reasons,” he said “Why not partner with municipalities within our regional district so we’re all aligned in the same type of policies and implementation, and such, related to the legislation, but more importantly to bring costs down. Why have four or five individual incorporated municipalities spend tens of thousands of dollars when you can cost share and bring costs down by simple economics.”
