HALIFAX: Proposed changes to the province’s Municipal Government Act (MGA) continue to attract opposition in the Strait area.
Last week, the provincial government gave second reading to Bill 85, which would amend Chapter 18 of the MGA respecting Cape Breton Regional Municipality (CBRM).
In a release issued last week, Inverness MLA Allan MacMaster said Antigonish MLA Randy Delorey and Guysborough-Eastern Shore-Tracadie MLA Lloyd Hines were silent on the issue.
“This bill is an attack on the honest private investment already made in our region,” stated MacMaster. “The McNeil Government is using our tax dollars to do it.”
MacMaster’s release states Bill 85 gives the Cape Breton Regional Municipality the power to potentially give taxpayer-owned land away for free, and allow developers to avoid paying property taxes.
“The McNeil Government can say they will do the same for Guysborough County, but investors in Melford have already paid over $7 million to taxpayers for their property – fair and square – and they are helping to support the people of Guysborough County with $60,000 in property tax each year. That means small businesses and homeowners do not have to pay as much tax,” MacMaster stated.
Cape Breton-Richmond MLA Alana Paon stated in her remarks that “this bill is really about meddling with port development projects…. we should be competing with the world. We should not be competing against one another in this way in this province.”
When asked to speak on the issue, Hines said he did not have a comment at the time.
“Bill 85 is a government member bill and I am a government member, so other than that, I’m not prepared to make any statements at this time,” Hines said.
Municipalities such as the Municipality of the District of Guysborough, as well as the Town and County of Antigonish came out against Bill 85. During a recent meeting of council for the Municipality of Richmond County, some members were in favour of the bill while others said it ham-strings municipalities.
After Bill 85 passed second reading, the Strait Area Chamber of Commerce (SACC) sent a letter to the Premier and Municipal Affairs Minister Derek Mombourquette regarding the issue.
“Chamber members have spoken to Liberal caucus staff who have suggested that consultation with municipal units has occurred on this amendment to the MGA that governs them,” stated SACC executive director Amanda Mombourquette. “In speaking with elected municipal officials in this region [Port Hawkesbury, Antigonish, Inverness, Guysborough, Victoria], I have been assured that no such consultation has happened.”
The SACC executive director said the amendment represents a major change for all municipal units in how they will operate and interact with each other, and she suggested making such an amendment without consulting municipalities is a lost opportunity.
“At a time when we are on the edge of prosperity with clear goals from the Ivany Report and balanced budgets in this province, the inevitable result of rushing to pass Bill No. 85 as it is currently written will be a race to the bottom,” stated Mombourquette.
The Union of Nova Scotia Municipalities (UNSM) shared the letter it sent to the province when asked to offer an opinion on the matter.
“… The UNSM board is supportive of the right of CBRM to request special tools for their unique situation and is comfortable with the checks and balances in place to ensure the tool is appropriately applied,” stated UNSM president Geoff Stewart in the letter. “UNSM is very cognizant of the need to ensure this does not result in a race to the bottom and should this become apparent, UNSM will consult with all our members for an appropriate response.”