Leibovici to press fight for municipal funding

City councillor new head of national group

Coun. Karen Leibovici promises to use her new role as head of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities to fight for a “fair share” of tax dollars.

The four-term Edmonton councillor and former Liberal MLA was acclaimed president by delegates at the 75th annual conference in Saskatoon on Sunday.

Her one-year term will focus on developing an agreement to replace the Building Canada Fund, a program that allotted $33 billion in grants over seven years for municipal roads, water systems, public transit and other infrastructure nationally.

That fund is to expire in 2014. Federal Infrastructure Minister Denis Lebel assured delegates at the conference Friday that funding will continue past that date without missing a construction season.

That means this year is critical for getting a better deal, especially with Edmonton staring at a $3-billion bill just for LRT construction.

Leibovici said funding needs to be delivered not as ad hoc grants but in a manner cities can count on and plan on for several years in advance.

“It needs to be long-term and sustainable,” she said. Funding needs to be sufficient, she said, and larger than the $2 billion in federal grants Canadian cities now divide among them each year.

Cities currently receive eight cents out of every tax dollar paid to federal and provincial governments.

“Which order of government should have the resources to do what kind of work? That’s the bigger question,” Leibovici said.

“We all recognize that there’s only one taxpayer. We need to use that one tax dollar in the most efficient way possible.”

On Friday, Lebel promised to hold a series of nine roundtables this summer to gather views from civic leaders, corporations and the public on Canada’s infrastructure needs.

He would not say how much money might be available, because that depends on the country’s economic performance. “I can’t promise you billions if we don’t have them,” the federal minister told conference delegates.

Leibovici said the federation will hold a public campaign to increase awareness of infrastructure needs.

The municipalities federation has not finalized what it wants to see in the new infrastructure agreement, but delegates at the conference favoured a funding scheme like the gas tax, which is predictable enough to borrow against, Leibovici said.

Leibovici started her career as a social worker in Montreal and worked for the City of Edmonton as a labour relations officer and equal opportunity officer after she moved west.

She represented Edmonton-Meadowlark as a Liberal MLA for two terms from 1993 to 2001, and was elected to city council in 2001, winning reelection in 2004, 2007 and 2010.

Leibovici’s acclamation puts two former Alberta Liberal MLAs at the helm of municipal organizations. Coun. Linda Sloan, MLA from 1997 to 2001, was elected president of the Alberta Urban Municipalities Association in September.

“It’s not that unusual. We enjoy serving,” Leibovici said. “In my case, I haven’t held a party membership since becoming a city councillor.”

The Federation of Canadian Municipalities also recognized former Edmonton city councillor Michael Phair on Sunday, naming him to its honour roll for his passion, breadth of vision and ability to galvanize support on important social issues.