Data-Driven Governance: Vernon’s Rentals Resolutions Set Stage for Major Policy Debate at SILGA 2026
As the calendar turned to January 2026, the ongoing, often fraught, dialogue between local governance and provincial housing mandates in British Columbia has been crystallized into a clear set of demands originating from the City of Vernon. Councillor Kari Gares, taking the lead on an initiative unanimously supported by Vernon City Council on January 26, 2026, is set to present two critical resolutions at the Southern Interior Local Government Association (SILGA) convention in Revelstoke between April 29 and May 2, 2026. These twin motions are not merely local grievances; they represent a structured, data-centric challenge to the efficacy and transparency of two major provincial housing levers: the Short-Term Rental Accommodations Act (STRAA) and the Speculation and Vacancy Tax (SVT).
The ambition of these proposals is to transform specific municipal concerns into a unified regional platform, one that seeks not to dismantle provincial policy, but to ensure that such wide-reaching legislation is supported by, and accountable to, verifiable local metrics. This push for evidence-based governance arrives at a time when the provincial rental market is showing contradictory signals: while major metropolitan areas report easing vacancy rates, localized markets like those in the Southern Interior continue to experience acute housing scarcity.
Anticipation and Implications for Broader Housing Policy
Anticipated Reception at the Southern Interior Local Government Association Gathering
As Councillor Gares prepares to present these twin resolutions in person at the SILGA convention in Revelstoke, the anticipated reception is likely to be one of keen interest, if not outright solidarity, from many member municipalities. The challenges outlined—the opacity of STR data and the question of SVT reinvestment—are not unique to Vernon. Smaller, tourism-dependent communities, and even larger regional centres across the Southern Interior, are wrestling with the same forces of housing market pressure and provincial regulation.
The first resolution specifically targets the information vacuum surrounding the STRAA, which was enacted in phases starting in February/May 2024. This Act, which restricts short-term rentals primarily to a host’s principal residence in 65 B.C. communities, was intended to return thousands of units to the long-term market. However, Vernon’s resolution argues that without clear, consistent, and verifiable municipal-level data, local governments cannot assess if the legislation is achieving its goals or if it is creating unforeseen negative economic consequences, particularly for tourism-dependent economies. The demand is for the province to supply the necessary tools for local officials, who manage land-use planning and economic development, to conduct effective long-range planning.
The second resolution zeroes in on the Speculation and Vacancy Tax (SVT). While the Province reported that the SVT has been effective, claiming approximately 20,000 homes province-wide returned to the long-term rental market as a result of the tax, Vernon’s own data suggests a more complex reality. Councillor Gares cited Vernon’s 2024 data for non-exempt taxed homes, showing 602 properties were charged, of which 181 were B.C. residents; 353 were other Canadians; 17 were foreign-owned; and 29 were untaxed worldwide. Gares’ analysis noted that Canadians constituted almost two-thirds of the properties taxed, prompting a query into the true domestic impact versus the perceived primary target of foreign ownership. The resolution demands not only the total SVT revenue collected within each municipality but also a detailed accounting of how much of that revenue has been tangibly reinvested locally in affordable and supportive housing initiatives. The fact that the SVT rates are set to increase for all categories effective January 2026—to 3% for foreign/unreported income owners and 1% for Canadian citizens/PRs—lends immediate urgency to understanding the tax’s local financial dividends.
The detailed statistical evidence provided for the SVT, showing significant domestic taxation, is particularly likely to resonate with councils representing similar demographic profiles. A successful adoption of these motions by SILGA would transform them from Vernon’s specific agenda items into a unified regional platform, significantly amplifying their political momentum. This collective voice carries far more weight when negotiating with provincial ministries responsible for municipal affairs and housing.
The Potential Ripple Effect on Other Jurisdictions
The successful propagation of these policy changes through the SILGA structure carries the potential for a significant ripple effect extending beyond the Southern Interior. If SILGA adopts these motions, it sets a precedent for other regional bodies across British Columbia, such as the Union of B.C. Municipalities (UBCM), to consider similar demands for data standardization and revenue transparency.
The core principle being advocated—that regulatory policy must be supported by verifiable data and that revenue generated locally should see tangible local reinvestment—is a universally applicable standard of good governance. This sentiment aligns with recent broader provincial advocacy efforts. In September 2025, the UBCM itself passed a resolution calling for the establishment of a Permanent Provincial Housing Policy Roundtable, signalling a widespread desire among local governments for a more collaborative, evidence-based approach to housing strategy that includes local governments, Indigenous organizations, academic experts, and provincial ministries.
Furthermore, municipal leaders across the province have expressed a need for greater provincial commitment. A survey conducted by the BC Urban Mayors’ Caucus and UBCM earlier in 2025 revealed that nearly half of the responding local governments had housing projects on hold due to a lack of provincial funding, reinforcing the call for financial accountability. The context of the provincial government implementing legislation like the Housing Supply Act, which imposes housing targets, often clashes with a perceived centralization of power and prescriptive regulation at the expense of local autonomy. Vernon’s initiative directly addresses this tension by asking for the *tools* of governance—data and revenue accounting—rather than attempting to rewrite the legislation itself.
The initiative serves as a case study in how local governments can effectively push back against perceived policy shortcomings by rigorously quantifying the problem and demanding the mechanisms necessary for effective local remediation. This entire developing story is therefore more than just local news; it represents a significant articulation of the desire for more collaborative, transparent, and data-informed governance in the ongoing, critical effort to stabilize the provincial rental housing market into the future.
The Dual Focus: Unpacking the Resolutions
The Short-Term Rental Paradox: Economic Impact vs. Housing Returns
The STRAA, which began its full implementation in 2024, aimed to curb speculation by restricting non-principal residence rentals. Data from late 2024 suggested that regulated areas saw listing declines, and projections indicated potential annual savings for B.C. renters reaching nearly $600 million by 2027. However, the Vernon resolution suggests that the *unintended consequences* are now the pressing unknown for municipalities like Vernon, which serve key tourism corridors.
The resolution calls for:
- Provision of clear, consistent, and verifiable data to evaluate the local impacts of the STRAA.
- The necessary tools to confirm the legislation’s outcomes and mitigate any unintended consequences, such as reduced local tourism revenue or disproportionate economic shifts.
- The methodology used by the province to collect and interpret SVT data, ensuring municipal trust in the figures.
- The total SVT revenue collected specifically within the City of Vernon.
- A detailed accounting of how much of that community-specific revenue has been reinvested locally into affordable and supportive housing projects.
For a city like Vernon, which balances residential needs with a vibrant tourism sector, the inability to accurately model the economic trade-off between housing gains and tourism losses is a critical policy gap. The motion is framed not as opposition to the Act, but as a demand for the data required to manage the policy’s downstream effects responsibly.
The Speculation and Vacancy Tax: A Demand for Accountability
The second motion delves into the fiscal transparency of the SVT, a policy designed to discourage property hoarding and channel revenue toward affordable housing projects in the areas where the tax is applied. The SVT, now entering its seventh year with increased tax rates effective January 2026, has generated significant capital, raising $79.6 million in 2024 alone, contributing to a cumulative total of $550 million since its inception. In the 2024-25 fiscal year, the provincial government allocated $1.9 billion towards housing initiatives in SVT-specified areas.
Councillor Gares’ resolution seeks granular detail on this process:
This request for local financial reconciliation underscores a principle of local self-determination over locally-generated, albeit provincially-collected, revenue streams. While the provincial vacancy rate in major CMAs showed a trend towards loosening in late 2025 (rising from 1.9% in 2024 to a forecast 2.3% in 2025), localized data in the Southern Interior, such as Nelson’s tight 0.4% vacancy rate in 2025, suggests the housing crisis is far from over on the ground, making the reinvestment question acutely relevant.
The Path Forward: From SILGA to UBCM and Beyond
The immediate next step in this advocacy chain, should the resolutions be endorsed by the SILGA membership in Revelstoke, is their advancement to the Union of B.C. Municipalities (UBCM) convention, slated for September 2026 in Vancouver. The UBCM serves as the primary mechanism for local governments to articulate a united political stance to the Provincial government.
The willingness of the province to engage with municipal data demands is likely to be a litmus test for the spirit of collaboration the provincial government claims to champion. The 2025 UBCM convention itself highlighted local governments’ belief that provincial oversight, while necessary, has sometimes encroached on local autonomy, particularly concerning housing targets. The resolution for a Provincial Housing Policy Roundtable, passed at the 2025 UBCM convention, signals a strong desire for a seated forum where issues like data sharing can be permanently addressed, rather than debated issue-by-issue.
If Vernon’s data-centric approach gains traction at SILGA, it provides the UBCM delegates with concrete, actionable resolutions that move beyond general calls for action. It frames the housing discussion around accountability, transparency, and the provision of essential administrative tools. In an environment where local leaders feel that strategies pursued over the preceding years have sometimes lost “the balance with accountability,” as noted by political figures in late 2025, Gares’ motions offer a pathway to recalibrate that balance through verifiable facts and clear financial oversight. The outcome of this early 2026 convention season will be closely watched as a barometer for local government influence on B.C.’s enduring quest for housing stability.