Groundwork started on CBRM charter
Council’s ad hoc committee holds talks with municipal affairs representatives
Although unlikely to ever be as historically significant as the Magna Carta, local councillors continue to maintain that a proposed Cape Breton Regional Municipality charter is vital to the future of the municipality.
And, while the 803-year-old English charter pertains mainly to rights and liberties, at least for Britain’s ruling class, the CBRM council wants its charter to ultimately give the municipality more control over matters such as taxation, which it believes essential to economic development.
The groundwork began on Wednesday at city hall, where a charter ad hoc committee, chaired by District 11 Coun. Kendra Coombes, was joined by CBRM staff and councillors for a workshop-style meeting with representatives of the province’s municipal affairs department.
“I think today’s workshop really helped nail down the question and that is, what do we want to do today that we can’t do tomorrow,” said Coombes.
“What can’t we do? What is the MGA (Municipal Government Act) denying us from? What can be introduced in the MGA? Those are questions that only municipal affairs can answer for us, so meeting with them very much helped – they are here to help us and guide us through every step along the way.”
In an interview following the meeting, Coombes said there are times when the MGA limits municipalities in what they are able to do, especially when it comes to issues like commercial and residential taxation.
“We are creatures of the province, and because of that we can’t do anything about, for instance, the property tax cap because it is provincial legislation,” explained Coombes.
“So, what we need are powers that allow us more flexibility in taxation, for both residential and commercial, so things like that are what we need a charter for, to allow us the flexibility that the MGA does not allow us.”
However, developing and writing a new charter is not as easy as it may sound. And, besides, Coombes said it would be pointless for the CBRM council to prepare one and submit it to the province.
“They (provincial officials) would still have to come here, and they would say ‘that’s lovely, thank you writing that, that’s your view’ – there is a process that we must go through and it will be municipal affairs that writes the charter, not us,” she said.
“The province has to be involved every step of the way so, one, we better get it right and not come up with the monstrosity that is the HRM (Halifax Regional Municipality) charter because Halifax has to go back to the government every time it wants to change a word or a letter.”
Coombes said there are plans to meet with the municipal affairs people again, but she added that nothing has yet been scheduled as council has a very busy and tight schedule over the next six weeks.