The Evolving Provincial-Local Financial Relationship in Canada, and the Prospects for Municipal Fiscal Autonomy
After tracing the evolution of the provincial-local financial relationship in Canada it has become apparent that the trend, throughout history, has been towards greater Provincial control and in turn less fiscal autonomy for the municipality. There has been an increase (due to demand as well as downloading from the provinces) in the functions and responsibilities of the municipality, as well as the cost of these functions, and a decrease in fiscal resources and revenue sources.
Yet, It has only been in very recent years that we have seen a trend moving in the direction of Municipal fiscal autonomy. The trend towards Municipal fiscal autonomy is possibly more prevalent today then it has ever been. The proposal of such things as Glen Murray’s New Deal for Winnipeg, and Paul Martin’s proposed change in federal-provincial-municipal relations (of the same name), provides optimism for local fiscal autonomy in the future.
The Baldwin Act was the beginning of Provincial Regulation over the Municipality. It was based on several principles including the decree that “Municipal Councils were the creatures of the provincial legislature and were subject to its sovereign authority.” The second principle of the Baldwin Act stated that a municipality’s power should vary with its size and character (i.e. whether it was rural or urban), and the third principle stated that members of council should be elected from only those people who held stakes in local property. “The powers of the municipal councils were strictly defined by the provincial legislature and strictly interpreted by the courts.” The Baldwin Act was only the beginning of what would be decades of development that would hinder the autonomy and independence of local government. The Baldwin Act began the landslide of provincial downloading, conditional grants and a provincial-local relationship that seems more like a parent child relationship then a relationship between two elected governing bodies. Early municipal roles were much more simple and straightforward then they are today, but they were dependent on much the same source of revenue as modern municipalities. Although modern municipalities receive much more assistance from the provinces as well as the federal government then did their early counterparts, they have very few new ways of generating substantial revenue other then through property tax.
Since the Baldwin act, the provinces have tightened their grip mainly in times where municipalities were in a state of great financial need, or where the demand on them seemed to exceed their functional ability.
The municipal system experienced a steady growth for several decades following the establishment of responsible municipal government in Ontario with the Baldwin Act of 1849 (Frisken 30). International interest was generated in 1954 with the creation of Metropolitan Toronto, the first major structural change in the system. Yet, it was not until’ 1967 that the Ontario Committee on Taxation recommended that the rest of Ontario be restructured in regional governments similar to the structure of Metropolitan Toronto (Frisken 30). As a result of the recommendation was the creation of ten regional...
An additional assessment concern is roof flashing. Roof flashing is a line of defense against water leakage. Usually water flashing barriers are composed of a sheet of metal, galvanized steel or aluminum, that is positioned over the joints in the roof and wall construction to stop water from seeping inside the home. A frequent cause of significant water damage to a residence is malfunctioning roof flashing.
The city’s budget crisis was not a surprise, the City Manager had forecasted the shortfall and brought it to the attention of the city council. Based on the organizational structure, the City Manager clearly had more knowledge and information about the city’s budget, which was his source of power. However, the city council actually controls the resources (money in this case) and how and where to distribute the resource. Both, the City Manager and city council possess authority and power that neither want to relinquish; as a result, the employees suffered. Smithville city leaders needed to come together at the onset of the budget crisis and work together in a direct democratic fashion. When leaders come together and synthesize facts and resources, organizational members can increase the power they exert within an organization (Morgan, 2006). The budget crisis could potentially have been avoided had city leaders made an appeal to the public, explained the situation and offered a reasonable solution to the problem. Moreover, the transparency would have relieved some tension between the City Manager, city council, and the three labor unions. Because the city was not transparent and forthcoming with union leaders, the city negotiators enter the negotiation process giving members false hope of receiving salary and benefit increases when there were none to give. In summary, given the current situation, the City Manager needed to exert his expert power on the budget issue, join alliance with the union leaders, and push the city council to change city charter to implement the sales tax, which would have potentially off-set the budget
There exists an ever-looming threat of Quebec secession, as the province pushes for greater autonomy, recognition as a distinct nation within Canada, and greater representation on the federal level. The federal government’s relationship with Quebec is one that exhibits the “paradox of federalism” as described by Lawrence Anderson in ‘Both Too Much and Too Little: Sources of Federal Instability in Canada’, the simple truth that in federations “federal institutions can prevent secession by satisfying some of the institutional demands of those who might desire more significant decentralization but they also provide institutions to those that might be in conflict with the center that can be used to mobilize for alteration…” He argues that the government of Quebec, due to it’s focus on autonomy and protection of identity, would be the province best equipped to secede with “minimal disruption”. In this, a shortcoming of strong regional autonomies in federations is made apparent: in attempts to accommodate diversity the nationalist regions are granted the institutional framework for secession. A push in the reverse, towards less regional autonomy may have similar results, however. As the federal government moves towards centralization to avoid this paradox, they are perceived as invalidating the terms of the federation, and nationalistic pushes for autonomy still
Frist, federalism is the division of power between the provinces and the federal government (Cutler 2010, 3). As well, Federal systems tend to be made up of multiple parts, which do not necessarily work together (Brock 2008, 3). There has been an increase on the study of federalism in recent years, which has created a more in-depth look at how federalism impacts the government. (Farfard Rocher 2009, 294). There are two aspects of federalism and both of them put limitations on the influence of the prime minister. The first is called political asymmetry; this encompasses the various attitudes of the different provinces such as the culture, economic, social and political conditions and how it shapes the relationship between the provincial and federal governments (Brock 2008, 4). This can create a problem for the federal government because it means that they may ha...
This paper will prove how regionalism is a prominent feature of Canadian life, and affects the legislative institutions, especially the Senate, electoral system, and party system as well as the agendas of the political parties the most. This paper will examine the influence of regionalism on Canada’s legislative institutions and agendas of political part...
In the 1870s, aside from Manitoba, the remainder of the North-West was wholly without any form of government. This meant that nominal control was in the hands of Manitoba’s lieutenant-governor until 1873: after-which he was given an appointed council to help out. One of the most notable actions made by the lieutenant-governor, and his council in 1873 was the creation of the NWMP (North-West Mounted Police). It was not until after the North-West Territories act of 1875 that the North-West Territories received their own, exclusive, lieutenant-governor. Still, without their own judicial and police force, primary power laid in the hands of Ottawa: who had the ability to disallow any locally driven ordinances. The Metis people remained relatively independent and politically involved, organizing their own local government by 1875, despite the pseudo-federal administration imposed on the North-West. However, it was all grou...
Thomas Jefferson also had some dark history. Thomas Jefferson owned many slaves. When Thomas was 14 his father died and left him a 3,000 acre slave plantation with about 30 slaves. At one point he owned up to 600 slaves. There are many people that say Mr. Jefferson may have had a long term relationship with one of his female slaves, Sally Hemmings. It seems that most people agree that they had several children together. It is hard now to imagine what it would have been like to grow up on a slave plantation and to inherit ownership of slaves. Thomas Jefferson must have had many feelings of slavery through the years. Maybe some of the things that he saw on his own plantatio...
Stevenson, Garth. "Federalism and Intergovernmental Relations." Canadian Politics in the 21st Century. Ed. Michael S. Whittington and Glen Williams. Scarborough, Ont.: Nelson Thomson Learning, 2000. 85-1
Even though he had some very dark moments in his political career and personal life, he remains as one of the greatest presidents in the history of the United States. His bravery, courage, persistence, leadership, and intellectual brightness helped guide the United States of America in some of its most formative and critical years. Even though Thomas Jefferson was not a Christian, God used this man to pave the way for a new country where individuals are free to worship Jesus freely without persecution. Individuals should look to Jefferson when considering one of the greatest leaders in the early years of America. Overall, Thomas Jefferson will hold a high place of respect and dignity in American history in the countless years to
Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, Alternative Federal Budget 2011, Report: Rethink, Rebuild, Renew (pg. 69, 70, 72, 75) Retrieved from: http://www.policyalternatives.ca/AFB2011
One man envisioned a world free of persecution, where all men were created equal while being governed by respected leaders guiding their country to new heights. Thomas Jefferson, one of the most influential founding fathers of America, was a Democratic-Republican who loved to read and write eventually inspiring the draft of The Declaration of Independence after being elected in one of the most crucial votes in American history. In a time where our country was being transformed, Jefferson molded it in ways that had never been done before. He put freedom of the people before the government, their future leaders would be elected upon popular vote not through family relations. He created the foundation for what would would be one of the most powerful countries to date.
Verscious blasted 18 hours of ash. Pliny the Younger was the only eye witness to the eruption. Pliny wrote, “... the buildings where now shaking with violent shocks, and seemed to be swaying to and fro as if they were torn from their foundations.” Pliny goes on to explain that outside there was the fear of falling objects. People were yelling, crying, and shouting out for family members. After the first day, the cone collapsed which caused the volcano to flood nearby towns with an avalanche of mud and ash. Pliny explained that his uncle tried to go down the to the sea to help people escape. Unfortunately, Pliny’s uncle was overwhelmed by fumes and
What if sports and psychology had direct correlation to each other? The Wall Street Journal composed an article by Robert J. called, “Mind Games: Weekend Athletes Seek Help” which pertains to a new form of psychology called sports psychology, and how it could be beneficial to everyone not just world class athletes. Robert interviews non- professional athletes as well as people that exercise for leisure asking why they haven’t considered going to a sports psychologist their response was, “Insurers say counseling to improve athletic performance is the psychological equivalent of cosmetic surgery and the won’t pay for it. (2)” Due to not having the income or the status like Lebron James whom is an infamous two time NBA championship recipient, or the world renowned Olympian Michael Phelps who retires with 18 gold medals. These people cannot successfully fund a health benefit as costly as this or even be recommended for these type of therapeutic services. With that being said sports psychology should be available for all athletes instead of being limited to professional competitors because this form of psychology is altered specifically for the athlete this practice can decrease the statistics of mental health problems, keep athletes on one accord to perform better in there every day demands of life, smoothen the transitions between professional athleticism, and retirement as well as provide promising athletes coping mechanisms to help them adjust in early stages of their careers.
To conclude, in the present Canadians are seeing change in PSE funding policies begin to come from the provinces. Due to the fact that “when Ottawa went against the grain and launched the Millennium Scholarship programs, provincial feathers, especially Quebec’s, were immediately ruffled,” provinces such as Quebec and British Columbia, among others, were motivated to “set up their own research funding agencies with the view to [maximize] the likelihood of obtaining funds from Ottawa,” (Bakvis 216). As for the legitimacy of cooperative federalism in Canada today, it seems as though executive federalism itself is turning largely paternalistic – at least in the sense of PSE. More often than not, in PSE funding, the federal government has taken the initiative while “one set of executives – those from provincial governments – was largely absent,” (Bakvis 218).