Richmond Municipal Council wants assurances from the provincial government that Bill 340 will not mean that municipalities will end up paying for transportation infrastructure.
The Municipal Reform Act respecting municipal grants and contributions passed first reading in the Nova Scotia Legislature and has earned opposition from the Cape Breton Regional Municipality, as well as questions from Nova Scotia’s opposition parties during second reading debates late last week.
During last night’s regular monthly meeting of Richmond Municipal Council, Warden Amanda Mombourquette noted the bill has the “potential to significantly impact municipalities” despite the years of work which was gone into the legislation.
Of particular importance to rural municipalities like Richmond County is the possible inclusion of a program for upgrades to transportation infrastructure, which could mean the transfer of ownership of roads and bridges to municipalities, the warden noted. She stressed that municipal units “cannot afford” to take on such responsibilities.
Mombourquette said the municipality has met with Richmond MLA Trevor Boudreau to “express our concerns” and the Law Amendments Committee has recommended that the road proposal stream be moved to Schedule A, which would not be dealt with in the current legislative sitting.
In the meantime, Mombourquette said the government has tabled Bill 340, which does not include the details of what will or will not be included in the service exchange agreement but is instead a framework that sets a path to negotiate the service exchange through regulation instead of legislation.
Richmond County Warden Amanda Mombourquette (contributed)
Creating a framework to move it from legislation to regulation will avoid delays when municipalities request a change to the service exchange, the warden said, noting that moving to regulation makes it easier for municipalities to make changes because they don’t have to wait to get on the legislative agenda.
Noting municipalities should be careful about expressing support, Mombourquette also said the bill might not pass without an expression of public support, in the face of such stiff opposition. She noted that she does not want “all of the good work” in the fields of housing and corrections, which promise “substantial savings,” to be thrown out if the bill does not pass.
Deputy Warden Shawn Samson agreed, pointing to a possible savings of $440,000 in corrections and housing under the legislation.
District 5 Councillor Brent Sampson is skeptical that Richmond County “will get all the goodies” by removing transportation from the bill but said he can support the legislation if the municipality’s issues are expressed clearly, a point which District 3 Councillor Melanie Sampson agreed with, noting that “everybody is trying to balance something.”
Council agreed to the warden’s suggestion to write a to Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister John Lohr in support of Bill 340, with clear restrictions that Richmond County supports it as a way to achieve what was discussed with municipalities, and specifically that the ownership of transportation infrastructure will not be part of the service exchange agreement.