Whereas under the current funding model the Province provides funding for capital projects related to building and maintaining hospital infrastructure that is equivalent to a proportion not exceeding 60 percent of the cost, with 40 percent being cost-shared by the regional hospital districts; And whereas this formula results in increases to local property taxation for regional hospital districts at levels that are unsustainable, given the diverse and growing demands on taxation dollars faced by local governments and the increasing costs of capital infrastructure projects: Therefore be it resolved that UBCM request that the provincial government review the cost-sharing model for funding hospital capital projects and consult with regional hospital district boards with a view to reducing the reliance on property tax funding at the local government level, enabling local governments to implement sustainable taxation approaches for a realistic portion of the costs associated with hospital capital projects.
Ministry of Health Regional hospital districts RHDs are key partners in building and maintaining local hospital infrastructure. Health authorities work closely with their RHDs to determine what level of cost sharing may be possible for specific projects within their approved capital plans and RHDs are expected to contribute 40 percent of capital project costs within their region. The Ministry of Health recognizes that regional contributions towards health capital projects are inconsistent across RHDs and vary from project to project. When there is an opportunity to amend the Hospital District Act - the legislative framework for the roles and responsibilities of RHDs - the review of the cost-sharing model for funding health capital projects in BC could be considered in consultation with all stakeholders, including RHDs and the Union of BC Municipalities.