Policy Areas

Child poverty has been a priority issue for the Committee since 2009. The Committee worked closely with the Ministry of Children and Family Development (MCFD) on the Regional Community Poverty Reduction Strategy, which ran from 2012-2015. This initiative worked with seven pilot…
Provincial Policy Updates The Province’s 2023 housing plan, Homes for People, is an ambitious plan with wide-ranging elements that will have significant implications for local governments across B.C. Initiatives include: actions to promote densification and expedite planning…
Calls & Pathways to Action    The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC) released a summary report, Honouring the Truth, Reconciling for the Future, in June 2015. The report makes 94 Calls to Action, proposing concrete steps to protect…
Province reverses decision on Fire Safety Act In 2016 the Province passed the new Fire Safety Act. The Act placed new responsibilities on regional districts related to fire safety/inspection. UBCM members actively lobbied against the new responsibilities and received a letter…
UBCM members have sought changes to the funding model for regional contributions toward health capital projects. Regional Hospital Districts continue to be a focus area for the Health and Social Development Committee in 2022/23. UBCM helped draft two Regional Hospital…
The UBCM Small Water Systems Working Group has developed best management practices guidelines in an effort to address specific outstanding local government concerns around small water systems: Financial Best Management Practices Guidelines Subdivision Best Management Practices…
The UBCM Small Water Systems Working Group has developed guidelines for financial best management practices of small water systems.   Overview & Introduction Financial Best Management Practices for Small Community Water Systems in British Columbia [PDF - 739 KB…
In August 2016, UBCM established a Special Committee on Housing to identify ways to make housing more affordable for people who live, work and contribute to BC’s communities. The Committee considered potential federal and provincial actions and supports, in addition to…
Ensuring Local Government Financial Resiliency The Select Committee on Local Government Finance has issued its August 2021 report entitled: Ensuring Local Government Financial Resiliency - Today's Recovery and Tomorrow's New Economy The report forms the basis of Policy Paper #1…
Potential for Change: A discussion paper on the responsible conduct framework for local elected officials A new discussion paper for local government explores the potential of mandatory codes of conduct and models for their administration and enforcement. The paper, Potential…