Articles on housing-related advocacy, legislation and policy.
The Province has issued a series of new or updated guidance documents on the planning and development finance legislative framework brought into effect in the fall of 2023, addressing: tenant protection, inclusionary zoning, development cost charges and amenity cost charges, pro-active planning and more.
The new and updated guides are:
With a trade war now underway, the BC Government introduced a budget earlier today that continues to invest in provincial services while attempting to shore up the provincial economy. Incremental new spending has been targeted for local government priorities, including homelessness response, addiction treatment, street disorder and affordable housing. Longer-term challenges lay ahead, however, with a growing debt and still unknown impacts from tariffs to the provincial economy and government revenue.
Responding to a Federal invitation for engagement, UBCM submitted an overview of our policy regarding taxation of vacant lands. UBCM policies include requests for vacant land taxation to incentivize and fund development of affordable housing or shelters. Resolutions seek greater local authority through legislative support from the Province.
The Province is launching a registry for short-term rentals. Operators in B.C. with short-term rental listings on platforms such as Airbnb, Vrbo and others, will be required to register. This is in addition to any requirements and rules set out by local municipalities and governments, including any business licence requirements.
Last month, the BC Court of Appeal released its decision in Kitsilano Coalition for Children & Family Safety Society v. British Columbia (Attorney General), 2024 BCCA 423, examining and interpreting new provincial legislation. The legislation had been enacted to support the completion of a housing development, but was challenged as unconstitutional, a view that was upheld by the Court of Appeal in a decision released December 23, 2024.
The Province of B.C. has decided that it will not bring into force legislation presently to establish shelter criteria when local governments seek injunctions for decampment.
In their most recent Service Plan, the Ministry of Housing has indicated that cumulative targets for “specified municipalities assigned housing targets” will increase to 68-80 municipalities by 2026/27. When the Housing Supply Act was originally enacted, the Province indicated that it would be applied to set housing targets in municipalities with the greatest need and highest projected growth.
Homelessness is a serious and growing issue in BC, and local governments are seeing firsthand the need for more shelter spaces, affiliated social services, and bolstered first responder capacity. The UBCM Executive is meeting with the Premier, Ministers, and opposition MLAs to discuss these issues, and look for constructive solutions.
New provincial short-term rental (STR) rules including the principal residence requirement come into effect on May 1, 2024. In addition, the Province has created an STR Data Portal to support local governments with monitoring and enforcement.
The new rules coming into effect include:
The proposed 2024 federal budget includes a new housing plan, with several programs that impact local governments. Initiatives include supports for renters, homeowners, developers, and other orders of government. Details are yet to come, but the plan does address some of the core components in UBCM’s Housing Strategy.