Waterloo region leaders pleased with reprieve from provincial funding cuts

Waterloo region and area politicians are breathing a sigh of relief after the Ontario government announced it has rolled back some funding changes.

The province had said it would change the way paramedics, public health and child care are funded, starting this year but on Monday, Premier Doug Ford announced the province would reverse the retroactive cuts.

While she's pleased with the announcement, Region of Waterloo Chair Karen Redman said municipalities are still expected to find 4 per cent of savings in this year's budget.

"We still are assuming that in the 2019/2020 budget, they will be looking for these changes," said Chair Redman. "We're estimating that will be between 8 and 10 million dollars."

Redman said the region is still conducting a financial analysis to determine the exact amount.

Big-city mayors applaud reversal

The Large Urban Mayors' Caucus of Ontario (LUMCO) addressed the issue at a conference last Fridayin Guelph with Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Steve Clark.

The mayors said they were concerned with the speed to which the budget changes were happening.

Guelph Mayor Cam Guthrie, who is also the LUMCO chair, thanked the government and Minister Clark in a statement for listening to concerns and extending their financial timelines.

"There is no doubt that any provincial funding cuts will still cause municipal Councils to make some tough decisions," Guthrie said in his statement.

"But at least now we have the time to come to the table with the Province and figure out how to do this in a way that best protects our local residents and the services they depend on."

Not a lot of 'fat' to cut

Despite the backtracking from the provincial government, Ontario's mayors are unlikely to give up on the issue of funding cuts, according to Trent University professor emeritus Harry Kitchen.

"The types of services that the province [is] cutting funding for are those that most would argue should be funded from provincial budgets, if not federal budgets,"Kitchen, who focuses on the economics of municipal governments, said in an interview on CBC K-W's The Morning Edition.

Kitchen said Monday's announcement gives municipalities another year to plan around the changes.

But he noted that many municipalities have already worked hard to become more efficient to keep property taxes from increasing.

"Go out and play a golf game with your buddies. Sit around the table. You'll hear them complain about the property tax," he said.

"My comment is, 'What did you pay in provincial sales tax last year?' They haven't a clue. They can't even give it to the nearest thousand, but the property tax is very, very, very visible. People know what they pay and therefore they put pressure on their councillors."

Kitchen said he suspects provincial auditors will find there won't be much fat to cut from municipal budgets.

"They're going to find you have to cut services. And if you cut services, bang, you could be back into the same problem you have now."