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COMMUNICATIONS

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Khe cost for emergency

radio licences in

* London would jump to $52,070 from $236.

« By Chip Martin

: The London Free Press

Landon and other municipal
. ities across Canada wil be sena-
‘ ing hundreds of thousands more

* taxpayer dollars to Ottawa to pay
« licence fees for emergency raclo
~ Services.

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The federal government, anx-
ious -8 recover costs awocared
with assigning and monnonng
the public airwaves, says the
move is aimed at eliminating an
uniaic subsidy.

~ ’

* But representatives of nvanici-

~ palities say the move is unfair

a
es

kecause i is a tax Of emergency

> serviers and because the drumat-
’ ic ihcrease tomes ata time of an

a i ae ee |

economic downnin. In Londons
case, ihe fee will increase by
$51,834.

MomeX GRA “it's a money
nothing more than that,”

- say3 Massimo Bergammi, a sen-

> jar policy anatyst with the Feder-
: ation of Canadian Municipalities.

‘His orgaruzaion is fighting the

3 new fees and advising members

a
a
.

na to pay them until the dendiine
of March 31, 1991.

"It's x new (ax on emengency
services,” Bergamuni said, noting
the new fees will raise several
mation dollars across Canada.

Municipal officiais he’s spoken
to across Canada are “upset and
angered. It is the one issue (in:
vowing the federal government)
thet tas really stuck m-the crw
of a nt of people.”

London 6 faang a whoppmng
increase. in recent years the aty
paid a flac fee of $236 for the 944
radios camved in vehicles aad by
personnel of the police, fire and
engineer's dapartment, London
Transit and the London Public
Utilities Commission.

This year, the fedemd depart

.ment of communicators wants a
total of $62,070 0 license those
London radios and ther base
Stations,

FARTASTIC HAGRERSE: “In terms

of an increase, It’s fantietic,’
says London treasurer Stan
Readings. “It's a necessity (emer-
gency radio servier), so I think
we're stuck with it.”

The radios can be found in
everytning from police cTutsers
to garbage trucks to sewer repair

London Councilior Grant Hop-
croft says the ray licence fags
wil heve “a tromendaua lit
pret’ on local buvigets.

vehicles to fire rescue trucks and
snowplows. The $39-per-unit f-
cence fee even apples to tha —
eight radar detectors used by cry
pctice.

Jeane Locper, London district
directoe for the federal comment:
cations depertment, said token
fees werr eliminated in 1986 for
radios wsed by federal and prc-
wincial governments and last
year it was decided to end the
“hidden subsidy" for
runicipalties.

He sand nrunicipaiities were us-
Ing nearly sis per cent of avail-
able recto frequencies bat were
paying less than one per cent af
all cence fees. He noted tha gov-
ernment permitted: municipal.
ities a one-your delay to pay Ue
maw fees.

Grant Hoperoft, a London
eounciltor and former board
wresienr of the municipalities
federation said the new fees will
Bove “a tremendous inact” on.
jecal budwets and the imerenses
should either ba dropped or kept
to the level of inftstion.

Mennwhile, the federation has
asked Comomnicatians Minster
Marcel Masse to rescind the new
fees and outiined the muniapal
Pasition in letters to every mer
ber of Parilament. Its upser
about a lack of consultsion and
time for respomic.

“We are sail active on this,”
Bergamini said. “Essential sar-
viees should not be tex.”

aed

*}