This text is part of the special section Municipalities
New tax agreement, law to protect elected officials, progress in government orientations in land use planning… The Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, Andrée Laforest, draws up a positive assessment of her relations with cities and villages during the last year. She wishes to continue her work in collaboration with them to provide solutions to the problems of housing, homelessness and climate change.
The minister is delighted with the conclusion, last December, of Bill 39, the Declaration of Reciprocity concerning the recent partnership between the government of Quebec and those nearby. “In government, we have the same priorities as the municipalities. We talked about climate change, increasing the supply of housing, the homelessness situation, water infrastructure,” she lists.
Mme Laforest emphasizes that the agreement was renewed with identical terms to the previous one, apart from a few new features. “We added what the municipalities had been asking for for a long time: to perpetuate the growth point of TVQ,” she explains.
Tackling climate and housing issues
In office as Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing since 2018, Mr.me Laforest believes that his years of experience and his discussions with municipal elected officials allow him to clearly understand the challenges they face. Improvement in municipal taxation, support for local businesses and the construction of housing… “With the adoption of Bill 39, we have responded to the main requests from municipalities,” she believes, recalling that municipal taxation had not been reformed for many years.
The new law, which gives unprecedented fiscal levers to municipalities to tackle climate and housing issues, nevertheless provides no mechanism to sanction real estate projects causing urban sprawl. According to Mme Laforest, territory management is however done by other means. “We also adopted the new law on development and town planning. The cities agreed that all new construction must be carried out within the urban perimeter,” she adds, referring to defined territories to which notions of concentration, growth and diversity of urban functions are attached.
Among the priorities of his ministry, we find the review of government orientations in terms of land use planning. “There was the national land use planning policy, but the orientations have not been reviewed since 1994. We are also asking that there be some at the housing level, because there are had too much construction that was not planned in certain places. We want there to be planning, logic, in government orientations,” she said, promising that the details will be made public at the end of May.
The minister also recalls the creation of the Regions and Rurality Fund (FRR), which had a sum of $1.3 billion between 2020 and 2024, and which was renewed by Quebec. “It’s precisely to raise projects in the center of our communities,” she says.
Better protect elected officials
Tabled last April, Bill 57 plans to fine citizens who cause “disorder” during municipal council meetings with amounts varying between $50 and $500. The minister also reiterated that the law was not intended to silence critics. “We really need to see Bill 57 in cases of intimidation, harassment, violence, incivility, in abusive situations. But we totally respect freedom of expression,” she insists. Mme Laforest recalls that nearly 800 municipal elected officials have resigned since 2021. She wants to “reassure people who speak on behalf of citizens that freedom of expression will always be possible. We are really talking about abusive situations.”
Furthermore, while municipalities asked for $2 billion last year to help them adapt to climate change, Mme Laforest believes that the announcements made by his government correspond to more than what the municipalities are demanding in terms of amounts. She recalls the February announcement concerning $500 million over five years for the Accelerate the Local Climate Transition program, intended to support municipalities in this direction. She also highlights the Municipal Water Infrastructure Program (PRIMEAU), which provides $2.4 billion to support municipalities in the construction and repair of drinking water and wastewater infrastructure. “It’s a lot of money and we exceed 2 billion. I think the municipalities have understood this very well,” she believes.
In particular through meetings with the Table Québec-municipalités (TQM), the minister wishes to continue the projects initiated with the cities. Mme Laforest is also working to establish the Local Service Program, included in the FRR, in order to maintain the opening of convenience stores and grocery stores in the villages. “This is really requested by all elected officials. Let’s just say we have a lot of work to do.”
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