Alberta’s Mid-Sized Mayors’ Caucus (MCMC), which includes Cochrane, is calling upon the Alberta government for an appropriate provincial infrastructure commitment.
At the Alberta Municipalities Convention on Sept. 22, the MCMC – which includes 24 municipalities in Alberta – supported a resolution sponsored by the City of St. Albert and the City of Airdrie for the provincial government to expand the funding pot of the Local Government Fiscal Framework (LGFF) in 2024, and increase the funding stream to a 1:1 ratio tied to provincial revenue.
“What we are saying is if the economy in the province went up by 10 per cent, we should get a 10 per cent increase in funding to the province from to municipalities,” explained chair of the MCMC and Cochrane mayor, Jeff Genung. “Currently, the formula is saying 50 [only] per cent of that. So, it would be half.
“We are saying tie it directly to the economy of the province. When the province is doing well, then the municipalities should reap those rewards with the province. Ultimately, when the economy goes down, we should be affected in the same regard.”
With mid-sized municipalities reliant on orders of the government for long-term and stable infrastructure funding for capital projects, funding will be reduced by 25 per cent in 2024, when the provincial government shifts to the LGFF. Up until now, Cities and Towns have received provincial funds through the Municipal Sustainability Initiative, but that program is being phased out and replaced with the LGFF.
“We were talking about the LGFF years ago when the economy wasn’t quite so rosy," Genung said. "We think and feel that the province should change that to allow municipalities [to] get a bigger piece of the pie out of the funding pot to help us pay for the infrastructure needs and costs.”
Believing that “Alberta’s mid-sized cities are the economic engine of the province,” Genung outlines that communities like Cochrane are growing the fastest within the province, causing strain on their infrastructure.
“Therefore, we need a fair share of the funding pot to help pay for that growth,” he said.
Airdrie’s mayor, Peter Brown, agrees with Genung’s statement. With more people moving to Alberta, he noted funding is required to pay for the growth.
“In my mind, Jeff is correct,” Brown said “… We are the ones providing housing, and we are the ones providing employment, and we are the ones that need to be supported.”
In order to measure and show the provincial government the economic influence of the MCMC’s 24 member municipalities, which collectively boast a population of approximately one million Albertans, the caucus will now explore developing an economic impact assessment.
“It’ll provide some great data moving forward for the governments to say: ‘Hey, we need a bigger percentage of the pot to do what we do, and providing the lesser amount doesn’t work,” Brown said.
“At the end of the day, the people who pay for it is that one tax-payer; our residents and our businesses, to make up the difference of that shortfall. And again, that is unacceptable.”
With $340 million of the LGFF allocated for all Alberta municipalities other than Edmonton and Calgary, Genung reiterated the broader issue is the size of the funding pot.
“We’ve continually been asked by the province to do more with less,” he said. “We feel with the surplus and shift in the economics of the province, we should see a shift in the funding pot as well.
“Basically, the province is coming to terms with the fact that there continues to be downloads on municipalities to operate our communities, and the costs to operate those services continue to rise. And they need to accommodate that with more funding.”
Genung states that he is not simply demanding for more money from the province, but with the economic ebb and flow of Alberta, he asks that municipalities receive provincial funds accordingly.
Although no partnership has been solidified between the province and the caucus as of writing, the MCMC would like to explore the opportunity of a mid-sized city charter with a funding pool set aside for mid-sized municipalities allocated for what they see fit, similar to a current charter between Edmonton and Calgary.
“If that were to happen and we were get a larger piece of the provincial funding pool, we feel that we could then execute on the infrastructure that can service our communities and residents,” Genung said.
The next MCMC meeting is scheduled to take place in Airdrie Oct. 20 and 21. There, the MCMC will continue to galvanize their membership to act as one voice.
“We’re at the beginning stages of building a very strong foundation with the communities that are part of our group,” Brown said. “I think that’s going to be part of the grander conversation of things once we get this economic development impact study done.
“It’ll probably set the stage for opportunities. I know for the Federation of Canadian Municipalities conference; we are going to make our presence known.”
