Moncton City Council passed a motion encouraging the provincial government to regulate municipal election campaign spending.
Enhancing Democracy Committee spokesperson Frank Vandenburg says there should be disclosure of campaign spending, and also contributions.
The current Municipal Elections Act talks about whether money going to citizens can have an impact on the election.
“Isn’t it equally important that we would know where these contributions would be coming from so when people looked at voting records they could see if there was anything there that was a need to be concerned about?” asked Vandenburg.
He says that could include caps on campaign spending to level the playing field.
“Not everyone has significant amounts [of money] to bring into an election, and so by leveling the playing field in that fashion it means more people can participate without taking the risk of a substantial financial burden,” says Vandenburg.
He says this request mimics existing federal and provincial regulations.
“There already are currently limits, there are budgets and disclosure requirements,” says Vandenburg. “It’s just recognizing that municipal governance is also very important and should have the same checks and balances.”
Vandenburg adds knowing how much was spent, and by whom is just basic transparency.
