B.C. NDP MLA Leonard Krog has heard back on his complaint to B.C.'s chief electoral officer about how he's handling the anti-HST petition. (CBC)

B.C.'s acting chief electoral officer says he acted out of respect for the court when he made the controversial decision not to forward the Fight HST petition to a legislative committee.

Craig James revealed his motivation in a letter Monday to NDP MLA Leonard Krog. It was James's first comment on the controversy that has embroiled him since his decision was announced Wednesday.

The Initiative Act, under which the petition was conducted, requires the chief electoral officer to pass a verified petition result to the standing committee on legislative initiatives.

'I just think he's wrong on this'—B.C. NDP MLA Leonard Krog

James said the petition was verified and did meet the standard of 10 per cent of voters' signatures in all 85 B.C. ridings.

But as a coalition of pro-HST business groups was in B.C. Supreme Court to challenge the constitutionality of the Fight HST petition, James said, "it was not only appropriate but necessary" to delay sending the petition to the committee until the document's constitutionality was determined.

"As the court would be shortly deliberating on the legal legitimacy of the very document I was in the throes of processing … I should respect the court proceedings and hold further involvement with the petition in abeyance pending the outcome of the court challenge," James wrote.

The business group argues that the HST comes under federal jurisdiction and the province does not have the power to rescind the tax, as the Fight HST petition demands.

Krog disagrees

If the court rules the petition is constitutional, the legislative committee must decide whether to send a bill to the legislature nullifying the HST, as the petition calls for, or to put the petition initiative to a province-wide referendum.

Krog, the B.C. NDP's justice critic, said he respected James's opinion, but disagreed with his reasoning on delaying the petition process.

"I just think he's wrong on this," Krog said.

James also said in the letter that he knows there is concern about lengthy court cases and appeals that could take months or even years to run their course.

But James told Krog that because of the huge public interest, he believes the court will fast-track the petition proceedings.

The business coalition behind the court action said Monday that if it lost its legal challenge it would not try to appeal the case to the next level, the B.C. Court of Appeal.

With files from the CBC's Jeff Davies