Whereas Federal Gas Tax funding is available to local governments for capital infrastructure and capacity building but with a limited set of eligible project criteria that does not include fire protection; And whereas the costs of fire protection infrastructure and equipment for rural property owners is often prohibitive because there are fewer properties within small fire protection areas to share those costs; Therefore be it resolved that the provincial government be requested to lobby the federal government to amend the Federal Gas Tax Agreement by adding fire protection to the list of eligible project categories that will allow fire protection service areas to access and utilize gas tax funding to construct fire halls and purchase firefighting equipment for the protection of their communities.
Ministry of Community, Sport and Cultural Development Based on local government feedback the eligible categories under the Gas Tax Agreement were significantly expanded with the signing of the renewed agreement in 2014. The disaster mitigation category is focused on prevention; that is infrastructure that reduces or eliminates the associated risks in advance of a hazardous event. Infrastructure for response to disasters, such as fire halls, is not included in the category. The Province will continue to work with the funding program partners, UBCM and the federal government, in order to deliver programs that address the priorities of the federal, provincial and local governments.