NEWS RELEASE

Ref: 860-505/005

Provincial-Territorial Meeting of Ministers responsible for Local Government
Regina, Saskatchewan - September 19-20, 2005

PRINCIPLES UNDERLYING FEDERAL GOVERNMENT INITIATIVES REGARDING MUNICIPALITIES

Respect for provincial and territorial fields of jurisdiction

Federal government initiatives must respect provincial and territorial jurisdiction over municipal matters and their legislative authority in this realm. In this spirit:

• Programs stemming from federal initiatives in respect of the municipalities must be covered by federal and provincial-territorial agreements that should:
  • respect provincial and territorial priorities;
  • ensure that the projects and programs stemming from the federal government initiative are subject to the approval of the provinces and territories concerned.
• It is incumbent upon the provinces and territories to determine individually the appropriate type of consultation with their municipalities.
• Agreements and fiscal arrangements between the federal government and the provinces and territories in respect of federal initiatives and programs must be transparent as regards all of the provinces and territories.
• Federal initiatives must recognize the different needs of and specific conditions in each province and territory and be flexible and adaptable.
• Federal government initiatives and programs likely to concern the municipalities should be elaborated and planned following consultation and in agreement with the provinces and territories.

Funding

• Any federal funding likely to concern the municipalities must be stable, on-going and thus reflect a commitment to achieving long-term solutions.
• Provinces/territories and municipalities will not be expected to sustain federal initiatives over the long term without federal funding.
• Federal initiatives will not pressure provinces/territories to divert financial resources from current priorities or allocate their resources to areas that are not priorities of provinces/territories.
• Federal initiatives will not create expectation of new revenues from provinces/territories to municipalities.
• Federal initiatives and program relating to municipalities will be available to all provinces and territories.

Canadian Intergovernmental Conference Secretariat (CICS)

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