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LIIDLII KUE/FORT SIMPSON
Fort Simpson resident Dennis Nelner is asking for a review of the Local Authorities Election Act after his name was taken off the Oct. 15 election ballot.

Dennis Nelner said he wants the government to review a section of the Local Authorities Election Act that deems nominees ineligible if they haven't paid their taxes by Dec. 31. - Miranda Scotland/NNSL photo

Nelner was deemed ineligible to stand as a candidate for village council because he didn't pay his taxes by Dec. 31, a requirement set out in section 20(1) of the act.

"The wheels are in motion now. You can't stop the election process. I'm not asking to," Nelner said, adding circumstances wouldn't allow him to take the position at this time anyway. "This is all about the principle now."

Nelner, who is self-employed, has been unable to pay his property taxes – approximately $3,400 – because of a lack of work, he said.

This isn't typical, he added, saying that before he got into a difficult financial situation he paid his taxes every year.

Nelner said he doesn’t think a person's inability to settle his or her debt with the municipality should keep that person from being able to run.

"I'm a property taxpayer, I’m (part of) a certain group of people in this community, why am I being discriminated against?" he said. "There are people here that don’t have property, that can come here and be a resident for 12 months and they can vote and they can run for office. I’ve lived here all my life, my family is buried here, I have roots here, I’m a First Nation and I can't run."

Sebastien Goyer, senior administrative officer and election registrar, said it's unfortunate that Nelner is ineligible to run but the law can't be ignored.

"There is nothing we can do really," Goyer said, adding it is Municipal and Community Affairs' act not the villages. "I can't just reinvent the law."

David Kravitz, chief municipal elections officer, echoed Goyer's sentiments.

"(Mr. Nelner) repeatedly asked me if I could make an exception for him. I explained to him what the act said and that it wasn't under my authority to make an exception," he said.

As for Nelner's suggestion of a constitutional review, Kravitz said such a process would have to be initiated through the courts.

Nelner said he doesn't intend to take the issue to court. Instead, he said, Kravitz should be looking into the issue because it's an unfair rule and one that's not followed across the country.

In other provinces – such as British Columbia and Alberta – nominees are not required to pay their taxes by a certain date in order to be eligible to run.

Nelner also alleges that the village ignored the rule in 2003.

Mayor Sean Whelly, who was running for council at that time, said he remembers questions about whether or not one of the nominees had paid his taxes but the issue was resolved.

"A further inquiry later on sort of determined that (the nominee's) taxes had been paid prior to him actually sitting on the council so I just left it at that myself," he said. "All I can say is that I'm the mayor now and I'm going to make sure people do follow the rules, whether they were followed in the past or not is kind of irrelevant to me."

Still, Nelner said he won't turn a blind eye to the issue.

"At the end of the day we're defending democracy, right? This is what we go to war for and if we don't hold the highest standards, if we don't scrutinize things, then we can't hold that banner when we say democracy."

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