January 21, 2008
The national campaign for Canada’s municipalities to receive the equivalent of one-cent of the GST and the call for the federal government to have a national transit strategy got a major boost December 7th when the Association of Francophone Municipalities of Ontario (AFMO) voted to support these two important initiatives.
“As the engines of Canada’s economy, municipalities need federal government partnership to address the challenges of maintaining the services and infrastructure that most impact the quality of life we enjoy in our communities,” said Councillor Lorraine Dicaire of the Township of Russell and President of the AFMO. “Everyone agrees that property-taxes and user fees are not enough to address what needs to be done and therefore support for infrastructure and transit need to come federally,” stated Dicaire.
The imbalance between what needs to be done to support and maintain growth in Canada’s municipalities continues to grow. Aimed at providing cities with a reliable and dedicated source of revenue that grows with the economy, receiving the equivalent of one cent of the GST would help to fix Canada's municipal fiscal imbalance and give cities the revenue they need to fund important municipal infrastructure and services. In addition, a federal national transit strategy will provide communities the transit infrastructure they need to support the growth on which all of Canada has come to rely.
About the Francophone Association of Municipalities of Ontario
The AFMO, the French association of Canadian municipalities of Ontario, was created in 1989 by Mrs. Gisèle Lalonde, Mayor of the city of Vanier, in order to improve the way French municipal services are administered and provided to their French speaking residents. The French association of Canadian municipalities of Ontario offers a forum to the elected members of city councils and managers of city corporations. It upholds laws with the francophone and bilingual associations in New-Brunswick, Manitoba, Québec as well as with officials responsible for city management in other Canadian provinces and territories.
About the “National Transit Strategy”
The strategy was released by the Big City Mayors’ Caucus of the Federation of Canadian municipalities (FCM) in March of 2007 and adopted by FCM shortly after. Safe, reliable and efficient public transit is vital to the movement of people in urban economies, presenting undeniable economic, environmental and social benefits not just for cities and communities, but for the entire nation. Visit www.fcm.ca for more information.
Media contact:
Diane Tessier, Directeur général par intérim, AFMO
Téléphone : (613)834-7067, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., www.afmo.on.ca