Political pay not done right CHANGES IN the way MLAs are paid will cost taxpayers ‘more money than before, says Skeena NDP MLA Helmut Giesbrecht. And a pay and expenses package approved recently by senior politicians from al] parties still doesn’t address pen- sion plans, he said. Giesbrecht’s comments follow the approval of the pack- age increasing an MLA’s base salary to $69,900 a year. MLAs now receive $49,000 — one-third of which is tax free, -° While that may work out to MLAs receiving slightly more take home. pay: than before, other measures will just .. drive costs up further, said Giesbrecht. He’s particularly dubious of a daily living allowance giving MLAs in Victoria when the legislature is in session. It was capped at 60 days but will now go on for as long as the legislature is in session. ~That, says Giesbrecht, is bad news for it will only en- courage politicians to keep the legislature open. ‘This is particularly the case with the opposition. It’s al- ways the opposition that wants the legislature to stay in session,’’ he'said, In addition to removing the cap, the amount per day is being raised to $150 from $100. “There’s nothing that can’t be done in the legislature that should take longer than 60 days,”’ said Giesbrecht. ‘What the effect of all this will be is that the effort to save money will be totally negated.’’ Also eliminated is the maximum number of flights per year, now 52, allowed between a riding and Victoria. That won't make any difference to northem MLAs who very rarely would travel up and down more than once a week, said Giesbrechl, “This will benefit more those MLAs who live on the lower mainland and travel back and forth almost daily to Victoria,’” he said. Gicsbrecht does support an increase of $10,000 a year to the $48,000 now allotted for constituency assistant and constituency office expenses. But he is critical of a proposal to create an optional RRSP plan replacing a pension plan eliminated two years ago. Giesbrecht prefers some sort of pension plan in which the government would make modest contributions, perhaps in the two per cent range. {OPEN MONDAYS! a Open Mondays THE TERRACE Public Library is now open seven days a week. That's Holly Nguyen and Ed Curell from the library putting up notice of the Monday openings. One more counsellor wanted THE school board should have an answer soon on whether it can afford to hire an additional elementary school counselor for this school year. Las! year there were two counselors who served nine elementary school in Terrace and Thornhill. But the school year started in Sep- tember with just one, The counselor provides support to students who have behavioural and emotional problems, assists teaches with unacceptable student be- haviours, acts as a liaison between home and school with social service agencies, and pro- vides counselling for parents and students. Currently six of the nine schools have clients on ‘the counselor’s caseload. And all the elementary schools use the counselor for assess- ments and consultations. Teacher’s union president Frank Rowe says right now the counselor is too busy to spend enough time doing actual counseling. Instead of hiring two counselors this year, the former Terrace school board decided to hire an- other teacher for the Teen Learning Centre. It’s an alternative school for students who can’t fit in anywhere else in the school system. Enroll- ment increased dramatically there this year, and the board wanted another teacher there to pre- vent drop-outs. 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But you can only get them if you order before ARCTIC CAT What eet All About ance nay rene Name of Volunteer: Phone numbers volunteer can be reached at: Organization(s) volunteer is active in, and number of years in each: elementary school counselor and the Teen Leaming Centre came out of the same special needs budget But Rowe doesn’t want the moncy for the sec- ond counselor, if the position is approved, com- ing out of the special needs budget. That’s be- cause the counselor would be restricted to work- ing with special needs students, It should come out of the general operating budget,” said Rowe. The role of an elementary school counselor can be preventative he said, and that’s more ef- fective and cheaper than trying to cure an estab- lished problem. Terrace Standard, Wednesday, March 26, 1997 - A3 a News In Brief Sales bounce back HOME SALES in the northwest bounced back in Janu- ary from a slow December. The results were enough to post a 15 per cent in- crease for the three-month period of Noy, 1996 to Jan. 1997 when compared to Nov. 1995 to Jan. 1996. Multiple Listing Service figures indicate 92 homes were sold at a valuc of $11.74 million. ~ That’s more than the 83 homes worth $10.166 mil- lion sold from Nov. 1995 to Jan. 1996, The average price per home also increased from ~ $134,999 to. $143,985 —a jump of seven per cent. In January 1997 alone, 32 homes worth just over $4 million were sold. B.C: Real Estate Association president Doug Perry attributed some of the strong showing to conlinucd low inlerest rates. Man with abalone fined A TERRACE man has been fined $5,000 for iNegal possession of abalone. Douglas Joseph Haworth pleaded guilty March 3 in Smithers court to one count of possessing shellfish, contrary to the Fisheries Act. Abalone is a protected species under Section 33 of the Act. Haworth was one of two people charged after 750 Ibs of abalone was discovered in their truck in Smithers. Darryl Gordon Braun was also charged. His court date is set for April 14. Stikine resources study THE STIKINE watershed area in northwest B,C, is the latest to enter into the province’s land and resource Management planning process. The plan depends upon getting opinions from as many people as possible in the area. Interested parties may include government agencies, natives, conserva- tion groups, hunters, forestry, mining, tourism and other groups. The Stikine area includes the com- munities of Iskut and Telegraph Creek, Participants will recommend to the government how crown lands within the 5 million hectare area should be used, Similar planning is taking place in more than 75 per cent af the province, including the South Kalum area surrounding Terrace. The Stikine LRMP is expected to take about two years to complete. Step lightly SPRING CAN be a dangerous time of year in north- em towns, warn Red Cross officials. Recent warm temperatures may have made the ice unstable. Extreme care should be used if you’re think- ing of walking er snowmobiling on an icy lake or pond. Keep an cye out for weak spots and dark patches on ice. Children in particular are at risk, and are some- times oblivious to dangers that look obvious to adults, Parents should discuss ice safety with children. Snowmobilers shouldn't travel on ice, but if they have to, ensure that the ice is at least 25 cm thick. Terrace Standard and Overwaitea Volunteers of the Year Nomination Form The Terrace Standard and Overwaitea host the 3rd Annual Volunteer of the Year contest. If you know someone who’s helped make Terrace a better place, tell the town! Nominated by: | Your Telephone: Volunteer's profile. Please provide a brief history on the nominee. How long have they been active in organizations in Terrace? How have they helped make Terrace a better place? Who's eligible: Anyone who does unpaid volunteer work, Membership in a group or society Is not mandatory. Nominees from past years can be entered again. Drop off form at Overwaitea, Skeena Mall, or The Terrace Standard office, - fax 10 638-8432, or mail to 3210 Clinton Street, Terrace, B.C., V8G 5R2 DEADLINE FOR ENTRIES IS FRIDAY, APRIL 4/97 Winners will be determined by a panel of three judges and will be announced in April. a eieriicm COUNT ON US FOR SERVICE YOU'LL COME BACK FOR! STAND ARD Overwaitea Foods Offer: dood ony at participating authorleed Arctic Cat dealers on orders of new 1998 model Arctic Cat snowmobiles — oxcépt Kitty Cat.@ “Financing subject to cradit approval. See your dealer for datalls. Always wear a helmet and’ don’t drink arid ride. @1997 Arctic Cat Seles Ing, @™ Trademarks of Arctic Inc,, Thief River Falls, MN sé7oi. (218) 681-4999.