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Diana Rogerson

Yukoners look for budgetary pluses, minuses

Officials with a number of Yukon organizations are going through the nearly 300-page 2017 federal budget released Wednesday

By Stephanie Waddell on March 23, 2017

Officials with a number of Yukon organizations are going through the nearly 300-page 2017 federal budget released Wednesday and taking notes on what might have an impact on the territory.

“We’re pretty excited,” Diana Rogerson, the president of the Association of Yukon Communities (AYC), said in an interview this morning.

The Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) has been in discussions with the federal government for 18 months in an effort for to see an improved infrastructure plan, she pointed out.

This morning, the FCM released a statement noting the budget “responds to key recommendations put forward by the municipal leaders” noting investments in transit, housing, a focus on rural and remote communities and green innovation.

The budget outlines $2.1 billion for northern and rural infrastructure over 11 years. The move to make it allocation-based – similar to how gasoline tax funding is provided – rather than on a per capita basis.

While it’s not clear at this point what that will mean for individual communities in the Yukon, Rogerson said Yukon communities already started working on their own plans.

“The municipality have been working their priority list for some time,” she said.

Whitehorse is the only Yukon community with a transit system.

However, Rogerson said the $20.1 billion for transit projects over 11 years is positive for municipalities across the country, and is something FCM has been pushing for.

“These are both big wins,” she said of the investments in infrastructure and transit for municipalities across the country.

A total of $11.2 billion to be spent across the country over 11 years on housing would see the territory receive $24 million for housing.

The AYC will be working with the Yukon government on the potential plans for the funds and plans for housing and spending, she said.

Also highlighting the funding for housing was Bill Thomas, co-chair of the Yukon Anti-Poverty Coalition.

Housing that has services continues to be needed, as do affordable rental units, he said.

Thomas hopes the federal funding will help move more initiatives on that front forward.

While there are projects underway to build affordable rentals, he pointed out that the formula used to determine affordable rent is based on the median rent.

In Whitehorse, that puts “affordable” rates at about $800 each month, and that’s something many still can’t afford.

He said he’d like to see other options explored that could bring the cost down further to somewhere in the $400 to $500 range.

Tiny houses, modular construction, and converting shipping containers into housing units are all options that should be explored, he said.

Thomas is pleased to see investments in the housing initiative.

However, he said he has heard little on any improvement to the working income tax credit that is aimed at those who work but have lower wages.

He also noted disappointment in the federal government’s decision to remove a tax credit for those who purchase transit passes as of June 30.

Meanwhile, Peter Turner, the president of the Yukon Chamber of Commerce, said the budget “appears to be something of a non-event” from a business perspective.

Like Rogerson and Thomas, Turner said he has yet to look at the budget in detail, but said at first glance there doesn’t seem to be much new in the document.

He did note it’s good to see there are no new taxes being introduced.

It’s also important to note that much of the spending is set to happen over many years and spread throughout the country.

It’s especially important for those in the three territories to remember as well that the North not only refers to the three territories, but also northern regions of some provinces – which means the funding will be spread out that much more.

He did note that depending on the details of a $400-million green infrastructure fund, that could be a positive for the North, but there did not seem to be any information yet on the amount of time the money would be spent.

As Turner pointed out, if it’s over four years, it could mean some significant projects; however, if it was over 10 years, that could mean less.

The deficit – projected at more than $28 billion this year – also continues to be a concern.

Each of the local organizations will be looking closer at the budget in the days ahead, they said.

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