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Kamloops minor hockey won't be sending Hockey Canada some of its fees this year in a protest against the governing body's settlements with sexual assault victims.

Hockey Canada already announced it would be reimbursing hockey associations around the country for the fees, but the Kamloops Minor Hockey Association is joining other associations around the country to make it known it won't contribute to a fund for sexual assault settlements.

"You're thinking about your daughter, thinking about the kids in hockey — how do they feel if they know they're putting money into this fund?" association president Nathan Bosa said.

The amount isn't much, but the hockey association board decided to make their small stance against a national organization that's used membership fees to settle with victims.

"If you don't acknowledge it and you're running an association in some way that's contributing to it, you are in some way contributing to the problem," Bosa said. "We discussed it as a board. It only took one conversation and it was unanimously agreed on."

It only amounts to roughly $3,500, which is $3 per player in the Kamloops association for Hockey Canada's "player assessment fee."

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That payment goes through B.C. Hockey, to which the association also pays thousands in insurance fees to Hockey Canada. That amount can't be held back because it would put the association at risk for liability and it could no longer play against any other Hockey Canada-sanctioned association.

At least part of the $3-per-player fund once went to the National Equity Fund, which was one of three funds used to settle with sexual abuse victims.

That money was used to settle allegations about the 2018 world junior men's team, in which a woman claimed she was assaulted by eight men on the team. After details about the settlement broke in May, similar allegations emerged about the 2003 world junior team.

The national organization has paid millions to victims since the 1980s.

"Hockey Canada does a lot of good for the kids, but... I don't want my kids knowing they're putting their funds into that," Bosa said.

While some provincial organizations already announced they wouldn't be paying Hockey Canada the $3 fee before the national organization announced it would be waived, B.C. Hockey's board chair issued a statement.

"It wasn't what we were expecting," Bosa said.

He said the statement was "watered down" and lacked any action.

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"We believe the time now is to be strategic and thoughtful as opposed to reactive. Although there is public pressure to withhold registration fees to Hockey Canada, we feel it is more beneficial to stay focused on finding solutions to the issues while understanding the true impact of holding back fees," the Oct. 11 statement from B.C. Hockey board chair Stephanie White reads.

B.C. Hockey plans to continue collecting Hockey Canada fees this year, then refund them to each association in the spring. Unlike B.C. Hockey, others were already planning to withhold their Hockey Canada funds this year, like the provincial hockey associations for Ontario and Quebec, according to Sportsnet.

Associations usually pay B.C. Hockey dues by Nov. 1, but Bosa said he and the board were waiting weeks for B.C. Hockey to provide a cost breakdown so they could decide how much to withhold.

"I'm sure B.C. Hockey is wondering why we haven't paid them yet," he said.

Bosa said the Kamloops hockey association is also in the process of changing its own policies to address any potential abuse or harassment issues in the future.

"In our policies and procedures right now, there is very vague information for us. We're rewriting our policies from the bottom up," he said.

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The association is working largely on educating parents, coaches and players on respectful behaviour. He said it's especially focused on making minor hockey in Kamloops more accessible for girls and non-binary players, along with people of colour.

While Hockey Canada faces its own backlash for how it has handled sexual assaults among its high-profile world junior men's team, local minor hockey in B.C. can have its own issues, too.

Bosa didn't provide details on any incidents that are or have been investigated in Kamloops, but he said they are often dealt with quickly and the investigators are "thorough."

"I do know last year there was something going on where there was an allegation made. We investigated it, but it stopped because we didn't get a statement," Bosa said.

In West Kelowna, a minor hockey team is currently under an RCMP investigation, which was announced last month. Police didn't say much beyond the investigation was around alleged "misconduct, but Kelowna Capital News reported at the time Okanagan HC was facing allegations of sexual harassment, cyberbullying and hazing.

A group of Coquitlam hockey parents are also facing allegations of racism and an assault where a player was punched by a parent, according to City News Vancouver.

As Hockey Canada faced backlash for its handling of sexual abuse allegations, high-level staff members and directors have resigned and it's restructuring as it tries to regain public trust. On Dec. 17, it will elect a new board of directors.

— With files from The Canadian Press.

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