August 4th deadline fast approaching to submit your comments to CPBC

Consumer Protection BC (CPBC) is  undertaking a review for each of the licensed sectors as the current fees and other charges expire on December 31, 2017. This consultation period closes on August 4, 2017. ACTA has been in consultation with the ACTA BC-YK Council and has submitted their comments for the review. In summary, the government is proposing an annual 2% increase for all licence fees an other charges for 2018-2020. This has been the case in the previous three years. The government is also looking to offer a reduced fee if you renew two (2) weeks prior to the expiry of your license. This is good, however, if you don’t renew in time, you can no longer pay a late fee. The late fee is being eliminated and now, if you are late, you will have to apply as a new licence application. ACTA received clarification on this point and while all criteria would be required upon submitting a new application, the security would be reviewed and if nothing has changed in the legal entity, CPBC may be able to retain the current security and the licence number may also be able to remain depending on the circumstances. Finally, only 2% of the fees collected are spent on Education and Awareness. This could be an opportunity for ACTA to highlight that a larger percent should go toward this activity. You will recall that in the past, CPBC’s messaging was not received as being very positive on the part of working with a BC travel agency. Again, this is where ACTA can assist in ensuring that the right messaging (positive) is presented to BC consumers. The BC government is offering the opportunity to participate in a survey. All feedback is to be received no later than August 4th. The government must provide 90 days notice of the fee change for implementation.