THAT Council support the Tri-Cities Chamber of Commerce initiative to secure the inclusion of the Tri- City municipalities in the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Torch Relay Route;

THAT Port Moody accept in principle, for the purpose of developing financial and other agreements, the proposal from the Village of Anmore and the Strata Council of Anmore Green Estates to gain access to the Greater Vancouver Sewer District and Drainage District through Port Moody infrastructure.

Moved, seconded and CARRIED

WHEREAS senior government revenues are directly tied to the economy, their contribution to Canada’s total tax burden continues to increase as the economy grows, to the point where an all-time high of 92 cents out every tax dollar is now benefiting senior levels of government, and municipalities’ share of Canada’s total tax burden continues to diminish;

BCMC07.2.01

FEDERAL REVENUE SHARING WITH MUNICIPALITIES

WHEREAS Canadian municipalities are looking for an updated fiscal arrangement that will diversify their revenue sources beyond the property tax, which does not respond at the same pace as growth, and provide them with the fiscal capacity to be financially sustainable;

WHEREAS Canadian municipalities generate significant wealth to support the national economy of Canada;

WHEREAS Canadian municipalities are seeking a more equitable distribution of the wealth that is generated in their communities, so that they can remain economically competitive and sustain and enhance the public infrastructure necessary to attract investment;

WHEREAS Canadian municipalities need a permanent share of growth-responsive revenues to assist local governments in addressing many of the challenges they are currently facing, such as ageing and insufficient infrastructure, growing responsibilities, increasing social and environmental pressures, rapid urbanization and the lack of sufficient financial resources.

WHEREAS in 2003, the Federation of Canadian Municipalities adopted a resolution calling on the federal government to establish revenue-sharing options, beyond sharing of the gas tax revenue, to support municipal responsibilities;

WHEREAS in June 2006, the FCM Big City Mayors’ Caucus released the “Our Cities: Our Future” report, and FCM released the “Building Prosperity from the Ground Up” report, both of which contained recommendations to address the municipal fiscal imbalance, including to share revenues that grow with the economy; to realign roles and responsibilities with appropriate financial resources and to establish a national transit program;

WHEREAS the Government of Canada has acknowledged that it intends to restore fiscal balance among all orders of government; and

WHEREAS the Government of Canada continues to record annual budgetary surpluses;

WHEREAS senior government revenues are directly tied to the economy, their contribution to Canada’s total tax burden continues to increase as the economy grows, to the point where an all-time high of 92 cents out every tax dollar is now benefiting senior levels of government, and municipalities’ share of Canada’s total tax burden continues to diminish;

AND WHEREAS the City of Toronto’s One Cent of the GST Now! proposal is not a new tax and is simply a re-distribution of revenues from an existing tax;

THAT the Federal Government be asked to return to cities one cent out of every dollar collected through the Canadian Goods and Services Tax (GST);

Recommendation:

Moved, seconded and CARRIED

WHEREAS the minimum wage in British Columbia has not been adjusted in over five years, the second longest period in 40 years in British Columbia that it has not been adjusted;