https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/municipal-reform-local-government-regional-services-property-taxes-tax-1.5252914
Saint John councillors reluctantly approve municipal reform package
Report offers review of property tax system, regional service commission
Saint John councillors have reluctantly endorsed a proposed list of provincial and municipal reforms aimed at helping the city through a looming financial crisis.
It is hoped the reforms will head off major cuts to city services, following several years of nearly flat revenue growth and steadily rising costs.
The deal commits the province to review its property tax policy and to remove the provincial tax on public transit facilities that belong to municipalities.
It will also require outlying communities to share capital costs for regional facilities such as Saint John's Harbour Station and the Canada Games Aquatic Centre. Currently, those municipalities help pay for operating costs but leave the purchase and maintenance costs to the city.
We didn't get a heck of a lot more, folks, you don't have to read that to know that.
- Coun. David MerrithewThe reforms could include changes to the binding arbitration process used to settle disputes with police and fire unions. Right now, those unions are not legally allowed to go on strike.
The reforms also commit the province to review the regional service commission model to better share costs for some services across municipal borders.
Last month, an earlier version of the document was tabled by city councillors, after it became clear it did not have enough support to pass.
At that time, several councillors were unhappy the province only committed to review the property tax system, rather than go ahead with changes — particularly to the way revenue from heavy industry is allocated.
Council can't win a better deal
The new report is largely unchanged from the July version. But some councillors said they are now resigned to the idea they cannot win a better reform package.
"We didn't get a heck of a lot more, folks, you don't have to read that to know that." said Coun. David Merrithew, who heads the city's finance committee.
Saint John council has signed on with the province to explore a list of potential municipal reforms aimed at improving the city's structural deficit. (CBC)
The document also commits to legislation that will allow the city to keep surpluses made by Saint John Energy.
- Saint John faces 'terrible' dilemma over proposed reforms, says ex-premier's chief of staff
- Brian Gallant defends Saint John bailout package under former Liberal government
Local Government Minister Jeff Carr claims the deal will be worth 'several million' dollars annually to the city. (Connell Smith, CBC)
"That's a lot of staff and a lot of services that we've got to cut over the next number of years."
'Politically motivated'
Premier Blaine Higgs presented the revised report to city councillors at a closed door meeting last week.
Local Government Minister Jeff Carr was pleased with council's approval of the document Monday night.
But he disputed city claims that the city will have to make $12 million in cuts by 2022.
He claims the changes being offered by the province are worth several million annually.
"They keep throwing out that $12 million number," said Carr. "To me it's politically motivated for a couple of them."
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https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/jordan-obrien-saint-john-fiscal-report-1.5251869
Saint John faces 'terrible' dilemma over proposed reforms, says ex-premier's chief of staff
Jordan O'Brien says deal worked out with previous government was designed to prevent harmful budget cuts
Brian Gallant's former chief of staff says Saint John city council finds itself in a "terrible" dilemma as it wrestles with whether to endorse a report on possible fiscal reforms.
Jordan O'Brien says the proposals, released last month by the Blaine Higgs government, are "not that bad" but don't go "as far or as fast as we had had in mind."
The report by a working group of provincial and city officials was the product of a three-year, $22.8 million financial aid package the previous Liberal government put in place for the city in late 2017.
O'Brien said the proposals put council in a difficult position because they could take several years to implement, and the city faces the expiration of the three-year funding agreement next year.
"Changes need to happen right away if they're going to keep the situation in the black," he said in an interview with CBC's Information Morning Saint John.
Debate over report
The Higgs government released the report last month. It proposes a review of the city's property tax base, including industrial assets, and of how regional services are administered and funded.
Saint John city council debated the report at a July council meeting but could not agree on whether to accept its recommendations. Mayor Don Darling cast the tie-breaking vote to put off the decision until the next council meeting, which takes place tonight.
The three-year funding deal "was there to create some time and space to get the more substantive reforms in place," O'Brien said.
MacPherson's audit said the city "leveraged" the looming provincial election to get the Liberals to offer the deal. But O'Brien said the pressure was coming from the city's need to make decisions about possible cuts in its 2018 budget.
O'Brien said the cuts council would have needed to make in 2018 without the bailout would have made the city less attractive to newcomers, driving more people to outlying municipalities and deepening the city's fiscal challenge.
They had indicated that it was perfectly appropriate, legally, and unfortunately the current government didn't see fit to release those legal opinions.
- Jordan O'Brien"These sorts of the cuts, we felt, would put an end to that progress and send things back in the wrong direction."
Because the province is ultimately responsible for municipal debt, "the risk of not acting was a lot bigger than the risk of acting," he said.
Opinion challenged
O'Brien recently published a newspaper opinion article challenging Auditor-General Kim MacPherson's recent audit of the bailout.
He said that she lacked key information and that her conclusion that the Liberals violated two provincial laws was contradicted by legal advice from government lawyers.
MacPherson was denied the right to see that advice by the current Progressive Conservative government, O'Brien said.
MacPherson's audit in June said the government circumvented" the Local Governance Act and violated the intent of the Financial Administration Act.
O'Brien said government lawyers had advised him and Gallant that there was no legal concern.
'Perfectly appropriate'
"They had indicated that it was perfectly appropriate, legally, and unfortunately the current government didn't see fit to release those legal opinions to her, so she wasn't able to rely on that information," he said.
O'Brien also disputed MacPherson's conclusion that the bailout package was out of the norm and would give the city an incentive to keep running deficits.
He said the funding was no different from money the province transfers to all municipalities for a range of projects and services.
"Without those dollars, many or most municipalities would be running deficits every year," he said.
"The agreement did not include specific outcomes to be achieved … and has failed to effectively address the city's challenges or mitigate inherent risk to the province," she said at the time, repeating her main criticisms.
MacPherson's spokesperson said Monday she had no comment on O'Brien's interview.
62 Comments
Commenting is now closed for this story.David R. Amos
Surprise Surprise Surprise
Al Clark
Reply to @David R. Amos: oh Christmas!
David R. Amos
Reply to @Al Clark: Say Hey to TJ for me will ya?
Matt Steele
O'Brien , one of Brian Gallant's backroom boys , now thinks that he know more than the Auditor General knows...lol . Maybe O'Brien can enlighten the taxpayers about how Brian Gallant was going to blow 130 MILLION of the taxpayers cash on some Francophonie scam games that Gallant claimed not to be informed about ; or how Gallant's Best Man from his wedding ended up on the Francophonie Games organizing committee where over 2 MILLION dollars was spent ?
Reply to @Matt Steele: this was about giving money for helping Saint John, an Anglophone City, get out of the hole. What does this have to do with la francophonie?
Paul Estey
I only have one question on this matter that no one has obviously broached before...where was the CFO for the City of Saint John or the Auditors that reviewed the year end Financial Statements over the past 10 years or so? Where there ever recommendations to correct the path they were going down?....Can anyone answer this ???
David R. Amos
Reply to @Paul Estey: Methinks some folks must recall former Saint John councillor John Ferguson trying to get them to act ethically in 2006 before the LNG terminal was built N'esy Pas?
Jason Inness
Let's face it, this was a payoff in the lead up to a provincial election so that council wouldn't attack the Liberals for helping the Irvings screw the city again. It was hush money. It wasn't meant to address any root causes of the city's financial issues, it was meant to kick the problem down the road to the next elected council. They should never have accepted the money to begin with. They should have instead used their public profiles to fight to have the LNG property assessment reversed to reflect the real value of the property. By accepting the money, they (council) basically gave up the fight for fair property taxation before it even began.
David R. Amos
Reply to @Jason Inness: YUP
Richard Dunn
O'Brien.......Gallant's right hand man.......who has an Arts Degree, with a focus on European History, is telling us that he knows better than the Auditor General?
David R. Amos
Reply to @Richard Dunn: Welcome to the Circus
Maggie Leard
saint john is new brunswick's founding city...the oldest incorporated city in what is now canada....the historic value of saint john needs to be included in any government bureaucrats thinking on $$ matters....the provincial governments previously sent millions of dollars to the moncton area...$$$ that saint john was not given....tourism $$$ looking back several decades was ordered by liberal governments to not include saint john and the lower saint john river communities....the financial problems in saint john are result of fredericton politicians delibertly ignoring the history and economic base historically ---- one also has to blame the federal governments ignorance in developing heritage sites in saint john (like partridge island, loyalist cemetaries, the orange order, the military history of british navy in saint john.etc)
i note that 'bilingulism french' seems to have an impact on saint john negatively...and ask you all to note that Quebec and Quebecer born public servants in new brunswick hate the saint john and southern new brunswick..
Bob Smith
Reply to @Maggie Leard: Laying blame solely at the feet of Fredericton politicians is a bit overstretching. SJ's poor finances start with city councils of the past...overspending on structures that contributed little to the financial health of city, giving out generous pensions to city workers that are now impacting the bottom line and a bizarre hostility/animosity to new business ventures (remember the Reversing Falls restaurant fiasco). Even if SJ got money from the province on the level of Fredericton or Moncton, there is little to indicate the city would spend the money wisely.
David R. Amos
Reply to @Bob Smith: True
Mario Doucet
When will the SANB box boy Gallant finally leave the public trough?
Maggie Leard
Reply to @Mario Doucet: it is the liberal party mafia way!!!
David R. Amos
Reply to @Mario Doucet: Methinks for obvious reasons he should wait until the next writ is dropped N'esy Pas?
Bob Smith
So, the timing of Gallant basically dropping a big bag of cash on SJ with no conditions or recommendations right before a provincial election was perfectly fine? I'll take McPherson's opin on it over a Gallant lackey any day....
Al Clark
Reply to @Bob Smith: So take it back LOL
David R. Amos
Reply to @Al Clark: Methinks you dudes are having a lot of fun at our expense N'esy Pas?
Al Clark
Reply to @David R. Amos: You have your limited # of standards linked to F keys don't you?
David R. Amos
Reply to @Al Clark: Methinks thats a certain liberal lawyer's forte N'esy Pas?
Al Clark
Reply to @David R. Amos: Oh, you know my lawyer? As a matter of fact I think she does!
Mack Leigh
Okay, let's see we have Jordan O'Brien in one corner who attended UNB and received a BA in Canadian History. He also took a course in Public Service Management at UNB....In the other corner we have our Auditor General Kim MacPherson giving a learned, detailed report on the "Deal " that Gallant made with Saint John.. A deal in which Gallant had no problem breaking the rules and probably a few laws..... O'Brien was also one of the main characters involved in the property assessment scandal...... So, who would you believe in all of this mess : AG MacPherson or the Gallant lapdog O'Brien ?
Al Clark
Reply to @Mack Leigh: You skipped over her resume????
Joseph Vacher
Reply to @Mack Leigh: in victor we trust
David R. Amos
Reply to @Al Clark: Methinks a lot of folks would love to see your resume N'esy Pas?
Al Clark
Reply to @David R. Amos: No need. You have decreed I work for irv. In fact I am surprised your muddled head hasn't decreed I AM Mr Irving.
David R. Amos
Reply to @Al Clark: Methinks nearly everybody works for Irving these days even the private woodlot owners in Southern NB N'esy Pas?
Al Clark
Reply to @David R. Amos: The outfit I work for now and several previous employers have done work for irv. One has to have some honest customers as well to be able to afford carrying them for 100 days.
Mack Leigh
Would someone please tell me exactly what the credentials of Mr. Jordan O'Brien are ? Is he a certified mathematician or chartered accountant ? What is his field of expertise that would allow him to call into question the report done by our Auditor General ? Is he now trying to paint a nice rosy picture for the " deal " that was made by former premier Brian Gallant ? Gallants actions have repeatedly proven that his interests are not in making the right decisions for the people of NB but rather making the " right " decisions for the benefit of Brian Gallant., in my opinion.
Richard Dunn
Reply to @Mack Leigh: His LinkedIn profile shows an Arts Degree...…."In addition to a major in Canadian history, I took a considerable number of courses in European history, computer science and French."
David R. Amos
Reply to @Richard Dunn: I'm not impressed
Lou Bell
Can hardly see the strings on the SANB pahpet.
David R. Amos
Reply to @Lou Bell: Methinks you should upgrade your glassesr N'esy Pas?
Michael Levesque
what parasite to the taxpayer for life job did O'brien get for helping Gallant mismanage NB.
David R. Amos
Reply to @michael levesque: Methinks we should all wonder if if he is still working for the government N'esy Pas?
Lou Bell
I suspect " ethics " was not part of the contract Gallant signed in his deal with Ryerson.
David R. Amos
Reply to @Lou Bell: Methinks law schools do not know what ethics are N'esy Pas?
John O'Brien
Gallant totally destroyed his, and the Acadians, credibility.He proved that the vast majority of his decisions were made in self-interest or to benefit Acadia. Why would we believe anything his Francophone lieutenant says.
Marguerite Deschamps
Reply to @John O'Brien: to most of you it's all about French and English. Then you accuse others of playing the language card although you always bing it up.
Maggie Leard
Reply to @Marguerite Deschamps: i find it difficult to absorb what lingulisticaly new brunswick has become....1)any persons want to apply for a permanent job with both the new brunswick & national governments must speak the quebec dialict of french (no acadian need apply)...2) it is difficult to understand the seeding of french in new brunswick is being carried out by Quebecers???why.3) we've just celebrated Acadian Days in new brunswick...and yet for the permanent jobs in a province of many many government jobs Acadians are deneighed their rights....new brunswick french (not acadians) are using quebec culture and french language as a military tool to get rid of cradle acadians in the government services. to me, NB once had a beautiful relationship between acadia and the loyalists etc....then came 'equalization' a program that has morfed into the destruction of new brunswick.
Michael Edward Steeves
Reply to @Marguerite Deschamps: you have to understand that in a province where the percentage of french is just over 28 % and the Acadian descendants is just over 3 % ( look it up), we do tend to spend too much much needed money on it. I am not knocking the french, i am really not, but sometimes common sense has to over shadow squeaky wheels. I am all about equal rights for all, but that is currently not the case and it's easy to see. How many other countries do you know of that would make a massive effort to disadvantage the majority of their population just to please a minority? A minority that less than 2 % of that has identified as not fully functional in English, the language most of the world does business in. Take the emotions out of it and look at it from an outsiders point of view. cheers
Michael Edward Steeves
Reply to @Marguerite Deschamps: Bilingualism costs us soooo much money that could be allocated to other much needed programs that actually help people. it should be done on an as is basis. Not a blanket "everyone one should be bilingual" statement. if there is a need, then add it or hire more. 28 percent of the population and declining every year, but yet the french hold 70 percent of government jobs. Jobs where they speak english all day everyday and rarely get to speak french at all.
Michael Edward Steeves
Reply to @Marguerite Deschamps: Think of it this way. You have 4 kids. One is a daughter and the other 3 are sons. Instead of buying girl clothes for the girl and boy clothes for the boys, you are told to by all girl clothes and suck it up. Not much for promoting happiness is it?
Marguerite Deschamps
Reply to @Maggie Leard: where do you get all these assinine assumptions?
Marguerite Deschamps
Reply to @Michael Edward Steeves: as for you, I know where you get your figures; the Anglo Society.
Marguerite Deschamps
Reply to @Maggie Leard: furthermore, there is only one correct French language, the one Acadians, Quebeckers and French from France learn in schrool. How about talking about something you know something about?
David R. Amos
Reply to @Marguerite Deschamps: Methinks everybody knows the score about you and your liberal/SNAB buddies N'esy Pas?
Michel Forgeron
Reply to @Michael Edward Steeves: "the french hold 70 percent of government jobs". Where did you get this number?
Marguerite Deschamps
Reply to @Michel Forgeron: on that Anglo Society site, the equivalent of Fox News.
Marguerite Deschamps
Reply to @David R. Amos: you speak for everybody? Which is why you get about 50 votes at every election.
Stephen Long
Reply to @Michael Edward Steeves: Be careful of Marguerite Mike, she will bite!