I see the true potential of the Kootenays being wasted by bureaucratic red tape and over taxation. This Valley has long been ignored by the powers in Victoria. As Bill Bennett retires this cycle I want everyone to think hard on his words " To get the best representation, your MLA NEEDS to be a part of government." What has this Valley seen in the way of support from Victoria in that time? I leave you to answer that question.
As for my vision of the Kootenay East riding, I see 2 towns in the East of this riding contenting with a $30 / Tonne Carbon Levy that eventually be $50 / Tonne. How long will our Coal industry that provides so much of the employment for us here be able to withstand that kind of economic pressure? I see another city in the middle with a struggling tourist industry because of the lack of Albertan money flowing through and I see my home Cranbrook in a shambles economically. I know that my party will not be taking power in Victoria in May. We have but 30 Candidates running this election. But what I can offer you is that I am not beholden to a party line that doesn't serve your needs. It is the MLA's job.... no his DUTY to honour his constituents needs regardless of what his personal beliefs are. THAT is what I can offer this riding. An honest approach to serving your needs. I will work endlessly to get your due in the East Kootenay riding. We need our roads fixed and our hospital desperately needs an MRI. These issues should NOT be left up to the taxpayers.
Share this profile
Misc. topics
Affordable Housing
Libertarian's promise
Housing prices reached new highs during the past year, making the dream of ownership more difficult. The BC Liberals want to spend billions on interest-free loans, which place a heavy burden on taxpayers while further inflating home prices and put our economy at risk of a 2008 style sub-prime mortgage crisis. A safer and less costly way to keep home prices reasonable is to increase supply. Bringing new housing stock to market is restrained in numerous ways. For example, over 80% of the land in Vancouver is zoned for single-family residential only. By relaxing or removing these restrictions, we can free up the market to provide more housing at lower cost.
Work with municipalities to reduce development costs, streamline building permit processes, and simplify and accelerate rezoning
Budget and Taxes
Libertarian's promise
Because we don't pay directly for services offered by government, politicians come up with incomprehensible formulas to make us think that someone else (the rich, corporations) will pay more. But there is no free lunch and funds must come from somewhere. By trying to hide costs, politicians just add costs, complicate our lives and create dissension among us over conflicting meanings of "fairness". Taxation is compulsion and libertarians seek to minimize compulsion. Wherever possible, government services should be financed by fees paid by willing customers. In a transition period, we seek taxes which are as simple to understand as possible (so government can't hide the cost of their programs) and ones which cause the least damage to our economy.
​
Personal income tax: Remove all tax credits and exemptions and replace them with a lower overall tax rate. Make filing simple by using a BC Income Tax form that fits on a postcard.
Business and Sales taxes: Encourage business growth and job creation by replacing the complex and burdensome PST and corporate income tax with a simple and low tax on business revenue.
Carbon tax: Repeal it. Fuel prices are already too high, with nearly half the cost made up by various taxes.
Education
Libertarian's promise
In an age when knowledge is widely available online to suit anyone’s individual interests and learning styles, our public education system seems decidedly old-fashioned. And the labour struggles that shut down schools would seem like relics of a bygone era if they weren’t such a recent memory. The problem with the current system is that responsibility for how schools are run flows the wrong way—up to administrators, bureaucrats and union leaders, instead of down to students and parents. We believe that parents are the best advocates for their children’s educational needs, and that teachers who have been freed from the one-size-fits-all model will be empowered to bring out the best in each child. If schools have the right incentives and the flexibility to customize curriculum to the diverse learning needs of children, they can prepare them well for 21st century life.
Instead of funds going to each school district, each family with children will receive a voucher to spend at the public or independent school or home learning plan of their choice
Maintain provincial standards for core subjects such as math and English, but provide greater autonomy and flexibility for schools (public, private, and home schools) to meet the diverse learning needs of children
Environment and Natural Resources
Fentanyl Crisis
Libertarian's promise
BC is experiencing an epidemic with fentanyl and other powerful opioids that is claiming hundreds of lives. It's also tying up emergency responders, making it harder for everyone to get an ambulance when they need one. All options need to be on the table when dealing with a crisis like this, and decriminalization is a key part of the solution. By confronting this as a health issue instead of a criminal issue, we will discover new ways to reduce harm, encourage treatment of addictions, and make our communities safer. And eliminating victimless crime from the police’s mandate we allow police departments to focus their limited resources on catching real criminals (those who assault people or steal their stuff). Exclude the enforcement of victimless crimes from the provincial Police Services Agreement
Health care
Libertarian's promise
Let's admit that the performance of our public healthcare system is lousy. A trip to emergency rarely takes less than several hours. It can take months to see a specialist. Patients on waitlists see their conditions worsen or even die, yet the lines get longer. Why? It isn't because we don’t spend enough on healthcare, which is the single largest item in our provincial budget and continues to grow. No, the problem is that this sector of economy hasn’t been provided with incentives to innovate or be more efficient. If patients had more control over how resources were allocated, there would be much better service and much less waste.​ allow health practitioners (doctors, nurses and paramedics) to offer services for mutually agreeable fees that are not covered by MSP (home visits, phone prescriptions, etc.) allow health insurance alternatives to MSP so that consumers can choose an insurance plan better tailored to their own needs allow more experimentation in care delivery models, such as primary direct care (where health providers contract to provide patients with a clear set of medical services for a low monthly fee)​
Oil and Gas Industry
Post-Secondary Education
Transit
Biography
My name is Keith Komar. I am a 45 year old single father of 2. I was born in Cranbrook B.C. and did most of my early youth and development here in the Kootenays. I moved from here in 1986 in the middle of the last big economic downturn here in the Valley and have been trying to come home permanently ever since. I am a bricklayer by trade and have found it quite difficult to find steady employment in the Valley as there is not a lot going on here in the way of work in my field here. My most recent move home was last June. I got laid off while working up in Grand Prairie and decided to move home so my son could graduate here in Cranbrook. We spent many of his earlier years here and he was happy to come home as well. I have been a same sex marriage activist since the late 80s and an anti Cannabis prohibition activist since the mid 90s. I am currently in the process of opening a dispensary in Cranbrook, as I believe that patients deserve access to medicine and we are way behind in our area in this respect. The Craft Cannabis industry in our valley could give a great economic boost to the region and I will do my best to promote it. I am the BC Regional Coordinator for the Libertarian Party of Canada and on the Board of Directors for the BC Libertarian Party. I am a champion of individual freedoms and will fight tirelessly to make sure Victoria does its part in rejuvenating the Kootenays back to a more vibrant economic place.