For those of you that have not had a chance to catch some of the newspapers throughout the province this month, here are a couple of articles involving our Crown Corporations that might be of interest to you:“Energy tale of two provinces” by Bruce Johnstone was printed in the Leader-Post on July 14, 2012. In a comparison between Saskatchewan and Alberta, Johnstone explains, “Remember when energy deregulation was all the rage? The old monopoly utilities were going to go the way of the dodo. In their place would be efficient, profit-driven private companies competing for consum...

Recently, the 2011 Crown Corporation Payee Disclosure report was released, detail payments that Crowns have made to Board members, employees, suppliers, and sponsorships, among other things. The Payee Disclosure report has been a traditional tool of accountability and transparency for our Crowns. It also shows the immense reach that Crowns have within Saskatchewan, and one of the reasons that this province is a great place to live and make a living. One of the largest portions of the report is the employee compensation section for each individual Crown. Any employee that earns more than 50,000...

The results are beginning to roll in from our Crown Corporations about their performance and successes over the last year. It is undeniable that 2011 was an excellent year for Crowns in Saskatchewan, many posting higher profits than previous years. SaskPower posted record profits while SaskTel reached $1 billion in revenue for the sixth consecutive year.Crown Investment Corporation (CIC) predicts that 2012 will see a $273 million dividend to the provincial government, including a special dividend from SaskPower.What you might find in the fine print is that the government has increased Crown Co...

Last week SaskWater’s annual report was released, posting their largest net income since becoming a commercial Crown Corporation in 2002.Highlights from the full report include: --Net income of $3.5 million; --$31.3 million in capital spending; and --Supplied 34.1 billion litres of water: treated and untreated. SaskWater currently serves 59 Saskatchewan communities, seven rural municipalities, 81 rural pipeline groups and a number of other business and individual residential connections.With SaskWater’s continued success, it consistenly provides safe and reliable water and wast...

Today is Saskatchewan, Crown Corporations are being sold off, contracted out, deregulated and dismantled slowly by the Brad Wall government.  As the people of the province, we are being lied to about the future of the very organizations that we have built from the ground up. Today in Saskatchewan when the government says they have not sold off any Crown Corporations, ask them about the Saskatchewan Communications Network. A Crown that was valued at nearly $4 million and was attributed to attracting millions of dollars a year for the television film industry in Saskatchewan – SOLD f...

Aside from the outright sale of Crown Corporations and their subsidiaries, the Brad Wall government has made significant policy changes that affect the future of Crowns in Saskatchewan.Sask First Policy One of the first major attacks on the future of our Crowns was the adoption of the Sask First Policy in late 2008. Although it is called a ‘policy framework’ according to a news release, it is unclear whether a formal written policy as even been produced. A CIC representative stated “There is no written policy available...Cabinet’s direction on the policy framework is es...

It is clear that the people of Saskatchewan are being deceived.  Our current government has made many claims regarding the future of Crown Corporations in Saskatchewan. One of which was a statement from our current Premier stating “Crowns are not going to be privatized and (subsidiaries) are not going to be wound down.” Our current government`s actions have been nothing but contrary to this statement.Merriam Webster defines the word privatize as the process “to make private; especially to change (as a business or industry) from public to private control or ownership.&rdq...

For the first time in the Crown Corporations history, SaskWater has posted a surplus two years in a row. With a net income of $224,000, SaskWater is also able to proudly state that a record setting amount of $24.4 million was spent in the province of Saskatchewan in capital spending over the last year. Along with individual business and residential customers, SaskWater provides services to 57 Saskatchewan communities, 7 rural municipalities, and 85 rural pipeline groups. Another notable accomplishment according to SaskWater is an 88.5% customer satisfaction according to community, associatio...

In Saskatchewan, SOS Crowns has been diligent in fighting the Saskatchewan government about their proposed introduction of a self-based water regulation system. Although it is sometimes unclear as to what each organization is responsible for, SaskWater is a Crown Corporation which is designed as a standalone company. As such, it is intended to generate revenue to fund capital costs and provide dividends to CIC which goes into the general revenue fund. They deliver both potable and non-potable water throughout the province and operate plants that treat water and deal with sewage. In compa...