No investment in the North was the key message the Bulkley Valley Stikine MLA hammered home at a 2026 Provincial Budget town hall in Smithers last week.

Sharon Hartwell, who is also the Critic for Rural Infrastructure and Rural Development, also brought up two of her collegues to break down the recent budget and give their thoughts on it. Peter Milobar, Critic for Finance, and Gavin Dew, Critic of Jobs, Economic Development, Innovation, and AI, helped field questions from Hartwell’s constituents.

Milobar opened the evening by criticizing the lack of investment in northern British Columbia, particularly in infrastructure, and noted the government’s decision to increase income tax on the first $50,000 earned, freeze tax brackets, and remove the $200 rural homeowner grant.

For 2026, the B.C. rural home owner grant threshold is set at $2.075 million, with basic grants of up to $770 outside Metro Vancouver, Fraser Valley, and Capital regional districts, and $570 within them. However, the $200 “Northern and Rural Home Owner Benefit” is repealed effective for the 2027 tax year.

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