2020

Whereas medium- and heavy-duty vehicles produce over 30 percent of the greenhouse gas emissions from road transportation in BC and the Province of BC has committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 80 percent by 2050 and Metro Vancouver has committed to becoming a carbon neutral region by 2050; And whereas the Province has enacted the Zero-Emission Vehicle Act which recognizes the importance of zero-emission vehicle sales requirements as a critical action to accelerate greenhouse gas emissions reductions in the transportation sector; yet there is currently no legislation or targets

Whereas the BC Zero-Emission Vehicle Act 2025 target for light-duty vehicle sales is 10 percent and actual sales reached 9 percent in 2019, yet there is still significant unmet demand for zeroemission vehicles across BC, and the purpose of the Zero-Emission Vehicle Act is to require industry to make zero-emission vehicles more affordable and available to British Columbians; And whereas the Township of Langley, Metro Vancouver and many of its member municipalities have committed to achieving carbon neutral communities by 2050, requiring drastic reductions in greenhouse gas emissions from pa

Whereas following the legalization of non-medicinal cannabis in July 2018, the Province has implemented legislation that enables local governments to regulate cannabis retail activities within their jurisdictions; And whereas the Province has finalized a cannabis excise tax coordination agreement with the federal government, which includes a share of the 75 percent of the cannabis excise tax revenues being allocated to provinces and territories; And whereas the Province acknowledges the strong local government interest in cannabis excise tax revenue sharing and the Province has noted it

Whereas the Province of British Columbia through the BC Assessment Act Prescribed Classes of Property Regulation B.C. Reg.

Whereas the February 2019 Auditor-Generals Report Access to Emergency Health Services recommended that the Ministry of Health work with local governments and British Columbia Emergency Health Services BCEHS to ensure that BCEHS can implement a co-ordinated approach to pre-hospital care that results in: - medical oversight, to the extent appropriate, across agencies to ensure that patient care meets acceptable medical standards - data-sharing between agencies to better understand whether patients are getting the right medical interventions at the right time - signed agreements outlining the

Whereas the Province of British Columbia has enacted Bill 41-2019, the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act to align BCs laws with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples UNDRIP; And whereas UNDRIP includes Article 5: Indigenous peoples have the right to maintain and strengthen their distinct political, legal, economic, social and culture institutions while retaining their right to participate fully, if they so choose, in the political, economic, social and cultural life of the State; And whereas the Local Government Act does not allow for Indigen

Whereas Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada IRCC no longer holds Canadian citizenship ceremonies in smaller communities around British Columbia, and instead hold them only in larger centers; And whereas Canadian citizenship ceremonies were often the only events to celebrate multiculturalism in smaller communities and they served to encourage an acceptance of diversity and inclusion in these communities: Therefore be it resolved that UBCM and FCM lobby the Federal Government of Canada to return to its previous practice of holding Canadian citizenship ceremonies in smaller communit

Whereas there is a large amount of smoke created during forest fuel reduction burns andor agricultural burns; And whereas there are minimal days that the venting index permits burning resulting in a large number of burns being undertaken during the permitted times, which results in a tremendous amount of smoke being produced, as all burning is taking place within a short period of time; And whereas forced air curtain burner or trench burner systems greatly reduce the smoke created during combustion by improving the efficiency of a fire resulting in clean burns with very little atmospheric

Whereas in past years forest licensees were required to present their forest harvesting plans to the local communities affected; And whereas there has been a breakdown in communications between the BC Forest Service, Forest Companies, and Contractors to the detriment of recreational and other legitimate crown land users resulting in usage conflicts and loss of income: Therefore be it resolved that UBCM ask BC Forest Service to compel tenure holders and harvesting contractors to present their harvesting plans to local communities prior to the commencement of logging activities.

Whereas many British Columbia local governments are experiencing rising enforcement costs and reductions in policing resources, resulting in strained police services; And whereas other jurisdictions have enabled additional law enforcement agencies to assist with speed limit enforcement: Therefore be it resolved that UBCM request that the Province of British Columbia, through the Ministry of Public Safety and the Solicitor General, amend provincial legislation to allow local governments, through a bylaw, the ability to enforce speed limits in school zones in order to provide an improved le