FEDERAL ELECTION PARTIES' STANCES ON MUNICIPAL ISSUES

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1 PUBLIC SAFETY Targeted funding to improve rail grade crossings Reopen Canadian Emergency Management College Reinvest in Joint Emergency Preparedness Project Access to climate change research Significantly improve the number and quality of rail inspections and audits, while issuing strong penalties for safety violations. Ensure that railways are adequately investing to improve the safety of rail infrastructure, while making key public investments in rail safety upgrades and passenger rail infrastructure across Canada. (2015 Closed the college in 2012 for an annual savings of $1 million (or 3 cents per Canadian) per year. No intention to reopen. Cancelled the program in , arguing goals had been met. No intention to reinvest. Work with provinces, territories, Aboriginal governments, and municipalities to develop a comprehensive action plan that allows Canada to better predict, prepare for, and respond to weather- related emergencies. (2015 announcement) Committed to providing an additional $2 million for disaster training programs formerly provided by the Canadian Emergency Management College. (2015 Committed to restoring $7 million in annual funding to a Joint Emergency Preparedness Project to bolster training and equipment against natural disasters. (2015 Federal Election Advocacy Campaign 2015 Page 1

2 Funding for climateresilient infrastructure FEDERAL ELECTION Provide dedicated funding to invest in a broad range of projects, including but not limited to: local water and wastewater facilities, climate resilient infrastructure, clean energy, and clean up of contaminated sites to facilitate new construction. (2015 Will incorporate climate resilience as a key pillar in federal infrastructure programs, and climate impact analysis into federal government contracting. As a first step, will work with provinces, territories, Aboriginal governments, and municipalities to develop a comprehensive action plan that allows Canada to better predict, prepare for, and respond to weather-related emergencies. (2015 Preventing damage from natural disasters by investing $400 million in flood mitigation measures and seismic upgrades for schools. (2015 Federal Election Advocacy Campaign 2015 Page 2

3 PUBLIC SAFETY Expand National Disaster Mitigation Program to include ALL disasters, allow direct application from municipalities, and fund larger mitigation and infrastructure resiliency projects. Reverse threshold changes to Disaster Financial Assistance Program INFRASTRUCTURE Create long-term, dedicated federal fund of $30 million annually for 20 years for replacing or retrofitting municipal wastewater treatment facilities Conservative Liberal NDP Provide dedicated funding to invest in a broad range of projects, including but not limited to: local water and wastewater facilities, climate resilient infrastructure, clean energy, and clean up of contaminated sites to facilitate new construction. (2015 Reducing water pollution by investing $200 million in wastewater infrastructure in small communities. Supporting local sustainable development leaders by investing $150 million in our communities through the Green Municipal Fund. (2015 Federal Election Advocacy Campaign 2015 Page 3

4 INFRASTRUCTURE Conservative Liberal NDP Introduce a new Current New Building Canada Fund permanent, long-term, (NBCF): sustainable, and predictable infrastructure program $22 billion $2 billion a year for 10 years from the federal Gas Tax Fund $9 billion 100 per cent municipal GST Rebate over 10 years. $1.25 billion P3 Canada Fund New Building Canada Fund (over 10 years) consisting of: $4 billion for the National Infrastructure Component $9 billion for the Provincial/Territorial Infrastructure Component $1 billion for the Small Communities Fund Establish the Canada Infrastructure Bank (CIB) to provide low-cost financing to build new infrastructure projects. Each year over the next decade, increase federal infrastructure investment. At full implementation, annual additional investment will be $9.5 billion per year. This will almost double federal infrastructure investment to nearly $125 billion from almost $65 billion over 10 years. For each of the next two fiscal years, double current federal infrastructure investment in the provinces to $10 billion per year from $5 billion. Reform and increase the transparency of the New Building Canada Fund by providing clearer project criteria and faster approval processes. The NBCF would prioritize investments in roads, bridges, transportation corridors, ports, and border gateways. Automatically transfer any uncommitted federal infrastructure funds near the end of any fiscal year to municipalities, through a temporary top-up of the Gas Tax Fund. This will ensure that no committed infrastructure money is allowed to lapse, but is instead always invested in communities across the country. (2015 Investing an additional $1.5 billion in new annual funding to municipalities via an additional cent of existing gas tax. By the end of their first term, the total gas tax transfer would reach $3.7 billion annually. Partner with cities by creating a new public transit strategy called the Better Transit Plan. Working alongside the provinces and territories, this 20-year plan will invest $1.3 billion annually, every municipality with transit needs. (Speech to 2015 FCM Convention) Federal Election Advocacy Campaign 2015 Page 4

5 QUALITY OF LIFE Maintain federal government's current commitment to spend more than $2.3 billion per year over next four years to improve access to affordable housing. FEDERAL ELECTION Conservative Liberal NDP federal budget commits more than $2.3 billion per year over next four years to improve access to affordable housing federal budget provides $150 million over four years, starting in , to support social housing in Canada by allowing social housing providers to prepay their long-term, non-renewable mortgages without penalty federal budget introduced a new Home Accessibility Tax Credit. The proposed non-refundable credit will provide tax relief of 15 per cent, up to $10,000 of eligible expenditures. Invest $20 billion in social infrastructure over 10 years, including affordable housing and seniors facilities, early learning and child care, and cultural or recreational infrastructure. (2015 Renew federal leadership in affordable housing, help build more housing units, refurbish existing ones, renew existing cooperative agreements, and provide operational funding support for municipalities. (2015 Direct the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation and the new Canada Infrastructure Bank to provide financing to support construction by the private sector, social enterprises, co-ops, and the not-for-profit sector of new, affordable rental housing for middle- and low-income Canadians. (2015 Platform) Increase the new residential rental property rebate on the GST to 100 percent, eliminating all GST on new capital investments in affordable rental housing. (2015 Give up to $125-million a year in tax incentives to landlords renovating aging rental units in the country. (2015 Platform) The NDP will work with the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation to provide incentives for the construction of affordable and market rental housing units. This will create 10,000 new affordable and market rental housing units over the next decade. (Speech to 2015 FCM Convention) Appoint a minister responsible for Urban Affairs within the first 100 days of taking office with a mandate to identify worthy extensions of the social housing investments that are soon set to expire, and identify new investments to tackle the crisis of affordable housing and homelessness across Canada. (2015 announcement) Federal Election Advocacy Campaign 2015 Page 5

6 QUALITY OF LIFE Establish Northern Affordable Housing Program Initiate inquiry or roundtable on missing and murdered aboriginal women MANDATORY LONG- FORM CENSUS Reinstate mandatory long-form census Conservative Liberal NDP Attended February 2015 roundtable hosted by the Assembly of First Nations. Cancelled the program in No intention to reinstate. As part of new, 10-year investments in social infrastructure and green infrastructure, will prioritize investment in affordable housing and climate change preparedness, both of which are important to the quality of life for northern Canadians. (2015 Liberals will launch a national inquiry into missing and murdered Indigenous women. (2015 announcement) Supported Private Members' Bill C-627 in Feb 2015 to reinstate the mandatory long-form census. The NDP is committed to calling a national inquiry into missing and murdered Indigenous women during the first 100 days of winning government. (2015 Supported Private Members' Bill C- 627 in Feb 2015 to reinstate the mandatory long-form census. "To better support good decision-making, a Liberal government has already committed to making Statistics Canada fully independent with a mandate to collect data needed by the private sector, other orders of government, not-for-profits, and researchers. We will also immediately restore the mandatory long-form census." (2015 Platform) Federal Election Advocacy Campaign 2015 Page 6