Bowman content after Tory budget

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This article was published 11/04/2017 (2817 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

If Winnipeg Mayor Brian Bowman is concerned about the amount of funding the province will provide to Winnipeg for the coming year, he certainly isn’t showing it.

Bowman told reporters Wednesday that he’s pleased the provincial budget demonstrates the “strong partnership” relationship between the city and Broadway is continuing, in the absence of any concrete funding amounts detailed in the budget and without knowing if the Building Manitoba Fund will be renewed — or for what amount — or even if the province will provide any financial assistance to regulate the taxi industry once the Manitoba Taxicab Board is phased out.

Bowman said he’s simply pleased the province didn’t gut funding to the city.

“We were anticipating the likelihood of deep cuts and we didn’t see that,” Bowman said. “I want to recognize there weren’t deep cuts (in the provincial budget) to the City of Winnipeg.”

When asked how much the province will give city hall to offset its costs for roads and bridges and transit, Bowman said he doesn’t actually know.

“Our understanding is that the monies being made available by the provincial government for both operating and capital are consistent with last year’s (provincial) budget,” Bowman said. “Our officials today, with additional time, are digging deeper into the budget and we’ll be having conversations with the province to provide those specifics.”

Bowman’s confusion is understandable — even the numbers the province distributed Tuesday about the budget didn’t match up with the figures the Pallister government gave out a year ago in its first budget.

On Tuesday, the province said it plans to allocate $366.2 million to all municipalities in funding and related grants, which it said will be a decrease from $361.2 million allocated in the previous year.

A year ago, the province said it would allocate $496.2 million to all municipalities, including $332.8 million through the Building Manitoba Fund, which reflects 1/7th of the provincial sales tax given to municipalities for core infrastructure and transit priorities.

However, there was no mention in Tuesday’s budget about the Building Manitoba Fund, which Bowman said was troubling. Winnipeg’s share of the Building Manitoba Fund last year was $206.8 million.

“We will be seeking clarity from the government as to what their intentions are with regards to the Building Manitoba Fund,” Bowman said.

The province did not explain the discrepancy in the figures from Tuesday’s budget document compared to last year’s, but it did reaffirm Bowman’s understanding that funding to Winnipeg and rural municipalities will remain at the same level as last year, with details to be released following discussions with municipal leaders.

“Over the coming weeks, we will work closely with Winnipeg to finalize the design of funding baskets that will deliver more flexible operating funding and deliver significant capital support,” said Caitlin MacGregor, press secretary for Indigenous and Municipal Relations Minister Eileen Clarke. “Budget 2017 ensures that both Winnipeg and rural municipalities will receive the same overall level of funding for capital and operating as they received last year.”

MacGregor said details on funding amounts for municipalities through the Building Manitoba Fund will be released when budget legislation is tabled.

“Budget details need to be discussed with the city and other municipalities over the next short while,” MacGregor said.

aldo.santin@freepress.mb.ca