Back to basics
It may be time for municipalities to return to their basic role: water, sewer, fire, playgrounds and street maintenance.
Denis Blais
Cut in the fat
The mayoress forgets the “welcome tax”, which is very profitable for the municipalities. What do they do with this tax? Municipalities were used to spending without looking too much (they subsidize artists with our taxes and a bunch of nonsense that is not their responsibility). In Montreal, we have the most councilors in North America and what does the mayor do? Before wanting other powers, start cutting fat. Before cutting back on baby food, I’m going to cut back on my dining out; before cutting into the purchase of clothes, I will cut out the cigarettes and the wine.
Jean-Yves Picard
Like Macron
We are hearing more and more from municipalities denouncing the fact that they will no longer be able to maintain services to the population without having other sources of funding. These same municipalities offer the best working conditions, according to the Fraser Institute and several other researchers. The gap is even significant compared to the provincial and the federal. Life was good and municipalities were raising taxes rather than effectively managing revenues. They have only themselves to blame and will have to do like Macron: stand up and make tough decisions.
Pierre Poliquin
In search of logic
I would like someone to explain to me the logic of paying taxes to the federal government so that part of the money goes back to Quebec and then these two levels of government transfer sums to the municipalities. It seems to me that it would be so much simpler if everyone levied taxes according to the needs corresponding to their mandates.
Andre Bergeron
Choice time
It is impressive to note that the only option considered by our governments is to increase revenues, that is, to tax us even more. Yet, by already having the biggest tax burden in America, we are already at the limit. It’s time to act like an adult and ask the question that no one wants to hear: can we afford all these “increasing responsibilities”? The short answer is quite simple: no. It is time to make choices if we want to bequeath a viable society to our children.
Alain Bouchard
Scatter
Cities have scattered themselves into all sorts of programs outside of their core services. They wanted to replace government responsibilities. They must return to the basic services that citizens expect and their budgets will be better for it.
Christian Boily, Rouyn-Noranda
An obsession difficult to understand
I do not understand the obsession of the municipalities to say that the property tax is an inadequate source of revenue and that they need money from Quebec. Quebec’s money comes from the same pockets, those of the taxpayers, just like the property tax.
Francois Cote
Above all, prioritize
Madam Mayor, first the municipalities must define their basic mandates and identify those that are not a priority, take stock of their assets in order to sell them to the private sector and prioritize them. Live within their means and those of their taxpayers who are still paying taxes to the three levels of government.
I am the owner in Longueuil and have not yet digested the 14 million footbridge on route 132, the investments in the municipal golf course Le Cerf, the Marina and its restaurant as well as the public market, among other projects. Are these priority mandates of a city and, above all, is it self-financing in fixed assets and operations by users or by property taxation? What are these assets worth and how much could they provide as a contingency fund for tougher years or reduce debt and its interest costs? It would be justified for Quebec and Ottawa to finance public transit more within the framework of climate objectives, but at the same time, not to make public transit more free for certain clienteles and to make it more efficient with the connection to the REM. Another example: should cycle paths all be paved, lined and cleared of snow? On the ground with rock dust, it costs much less and it would be enough most of the time and we would build more.
With inflation, recession, the state of public finances, debts and deficits as well as the financial capacities of your taxpayers, the prioritization exercise is essential for elected municipal officials.
Claude Desmarais, Longueuil