NEWS FILE PHOTO The 2020 provincial budget has not added to cuts made to support for cities, easing some of the strain for urban areas like Medicine Hat.
cgallant@medicinehatnews.com@CollinGallant
Municipalities that braced for the worst last fall with the United Conservatives’ first provincial budget, largely avoided new cuts in the second.
That document, tabled Thursday just four months after the 2019-20 Alberta fiscal plan, was billed by Finance Minister Travis Toews as “continuing the work” laid out last fall to contain expenses, trim regulations and lower corporate taxes to grow the economy.
Without specifically addressing cities, Toews said the province will examine new infrastructure funds with an eye to growing economic activity.
“To accelerate job creation, government will work with industry and municipalities to identify and prioritize strategic transportation corridors for development that will improve productivity, attract investment, and support economic growth,” he said.
There were no new substantial infrastructure projects listed for the region.
A planned transition from cities’ main infrastructure grant program, the Municipal Sustainability Initiative will be reduced by 10 per cent until the formula is changed in two years.
A continuation of set plans to reduce provincial grants that pay local property taxes was reduced by a planned 25 per cent, thereby halving the grant compared to 2018, and saving the province $45 million province wide.
That number includes $250,000 less paid to the City of Medicine Hat this year.
A similar reduction last year was part of a near $1 million reduction in revenue from the province. That also included receiving a smaller share of police fine revenue, worth $600,000 less to the city, and smaller social services grants.
This difference was made up in December when city council heard from local budget planners that changes to tax assessment models of cannabis production facilities would provide enough new revenue to leave a planned property tax increase slightly lower than expected.
Mayor Ted Clugston told the News this week he didn’t expect major changes from one budget to the next, and expected a no-frills budget again as he expected the government to focus of deficit reduction – a stance he supports.
Municipal finance officials said this week that budget documents would need a full examination before an opinion could be made.
NDP municipal affairs critic Joe Ceci said the budget was a bad deal for cities.
“Budget 2020 provides no relief for municipalities looking for more support to build their communities,” he said in a release. “They’ve been left behind.”
