WHEREAS Canada, British Columbia and the Union of British Columbia Municipalities have entered into an agreement dated September 19, 2005 to provide for the transfer of a portion of federal gas tax revenues to municipalities and regional districts in British Columbia; AND WHEREAS the purpose of the Agreement is to provide British Columbia local governments with stable, reliable and predictable funding for environmentally sustainable local infrastructure; AND WHEREAS the Agreement restricts the use of gas tax funds so that they will be limited to infrastructure investments, owned by the local government, that achieve reduced greenhouse gas emissions, cleaner water or cleaner air; AND WHEREAS the Agreement commits to a flexible approach in recognition of the diversity of Canadian communities; AND WHEREAS the needs of regional district electoral areas and small communities are vastly different than the needs of larger cities; AND WHEREAS local governments may wish to partner with neighbouring local governments, societies or individual residents for investments such as community hall furnace efficiency upgrades or residential woodstove exchange programs that, while achieving the over-arching objectives of the Agreement, may not necessarily result in the investment being owned by the local government: THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Union of British Columbia Municipalities request that the Agreement be amended to recognize the unique needs of regional district electoral areas and small communities by providing for a more flexible approach to allow investments in projects that do not necessarily result in local government ownership.
Ministry of Community Services The issue of ownership requirements in relation to capital assets funded under the Gas Tax Agreement GTA was recently reviewed by the Partnership Committee Committee established under the GTA. It is accepted that the GTA is intended to allow funding for projects that may be owned outside the public sector, given the broad definition of eligible recipient. However, because the Community Works Funds CWF must be directed to specified recipients i.e., particular local governments according to a specified formula, this has created an unanticipated barrier that prevents local government from directing CWF funding to another entity for a project that is, or will be, owned by that other entity. To overcome this barrier and ensure that the ownership requirements under the GTA support inter-jurisdictional projects and enable funding for capital assets that are used by the public but not owned by the local government, the Committee has agreed to amend the CWF Agreement template. CWF Agreements already in place may be amended on a case by case basis. These amendments will provide the desired flexibility for communities to direct CWF funding toward eligible projects that do not necessarily result in local government ownership.