Send Money, Stephen Harper

So welcome to the real world, Stephen Harper.

You see this is what happens when a level of government is chronically underfunded. Briefing notes from the Privy Council Office show that billions of dollars of stimulus funding have not been able to stop municipal infrastructure decay.

Pleas from the municipalities have gone mostly unheard when they cried that their road and water pipes needed replacing. The municipalities, creatures of the provinces, can’t rely on places like Queen’s Park for infrastructure money because those governments are strapped trying to cover health and education funding.

But the federal government has fewer critical and expensive responsibilities than municipalities and the provinces, but a great ability to raise revenue — through the very lucrative income tax.

Municipalities, the engines of our economy, need to know that a steady stream of funding will be made available to them so they can plan for infrastructure renewal. And don’t forget prime minister, solid municipal infrastructure is critical to building a successful Canadian economy. And that raises money for all levels of government.

Making part of the gas tax permanent would certainly help municipal revenue. That is expected to come in 2014.

But better still would be for the federal government to cede some of its income tax room to municipalities (with provincial approval). Cities know where they need to spend money on infrastructure repair and could tax accordingly. The current system, with its enormous backlog of needed infrastructure repair, doesn’t work.

We need a municipal income tax to replace antiquated, unfair and inadequate property taxes.

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