2019

Whereas legal aid is an essential service which provides the marginalized, vulnerable and poor with access to justice; And whereas legal aid has been chronically underfunded for over 25 years making it very difficult for the marginalized, vulnerable and poor to get legal assistance from a lawyer; And whereas many studies and reports, including those commissioned by Government, have noted the serious consequences for society by the continued chronic underfunding of legal aid; And whereas the Association of Legal Aid Lawyers have been attempting to negotiate appropriate levels of fundin

Whereas the National Building Code of Canada is a model document developed by the National Research Council of Canada, via a collaborative expert-driven process; And whereas the BC Building Code, though in many instances exceeding the standards of the National Building Code, is currently limiting the creation of affordable rental housing options, specifically secondary suites, through its standards: Therefore be it resolved that UBCM request the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing to revise the BC Building Code in respect to secondary suites in order to bring it into alignment with

Whereas elected local government officials contribute a significant service to the communities they represent through the time and effort invested during their tenure of office; And whereas elected local government officials in other Canadian jurisdictions, including Quebec and Ontario, are considered eligible to participate in the municipal pension plans in place in these locations: Therefore be it resolved that UBCM request the Ministry of Finance, and any other applicable bodies, to amend the Public Sector Pension Plans Act to permit the eligibility of Elected Local Government Offici

Whereas municipalities lose a significant amount of non-tax revenue annually because of unpaid bylaw fines; And whereas non-tax revenue sources such as a bylaw fines help offset costs to municipal services and reduce the property tax burden on residents.

Whereas the provincial government is undertaking a review of BCs natural resource sector professional reliance model to be complete by Spring 2018; And whereas the use of professional reliance within BCs resource sector is a long-standing practice; And whereas over the past decade the use of professional reliance has increased in response to governments regulatory reform initiatives; And whereas since 2013 the Environmental Appeal Board, Forest Practices Board, Office of the Auditor General and Office of the Ombudsperson have highlighted the need for adequate oversight of qualified profe

Whereas FCM elected and appointed officials representing their Provinces or Territories attend Meetings of the Board and Standing Committee meetings each year, with their local governments covering travel expenses incurred; And whereas some local governments do not have the funding available to cover the travel expenses for an elected official to participate as a Board or Standing Committee member and therefore may not nominate a capable individual as their local representative: Therefore be it resolved that UBCM request FCM to include a fee for reimbursement of travel expenses in thei

Whereas the Community Charter, section 116 item 2.c, stipulates that it is the mayors responsibility to preside at council meetings when in attendance; And whereas the Community Charter, section 130, requires that councillors be prepared to fulfill the mayors role in hisher absence, including presiding over council meetings, thus making it prudent that municipalities create learning opportunities for councillors to develop their leadership skills and gain confidence in meeting protocols and procedures: Therefore be it resolved that the Province of BC be encouraged to consider an amendment

Whereas the negative impacts to lower mainland Provincial parks and Crown Land recreation areas continue to occur due to increasing tourism and limited funding; Therefore be it resolved that the Province be requested to allocate additional funding to managing BC Parks, specifically Joffre Lakes Provincial Park, and Crown Land recreation areas in the Sea to Sky Corridor and Lower Mainland.

Whereas the Village of Pemberton, in partnership with the regional district, other local governments, and First Nations in the Sea to Sky area are working collaboratively to develop a regional transit commission to establish a regional transit system to connect Mt.

Whereas the detrimental effects of climate change are more and more evident in BC, Canada and the rest of the world; And whereas the world is currently on track for a more than 3 warming based on policies currently in place, and those policies will need to be strengthened significantly to limit warming to 1.5, based on recommendations of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change: : And whereas both the provincial and federal governments have been advancing climate emergency response through Clean BC and the Pan-Canadian Framework on Clean Growth and Climate Change respectively: There