The Province has granted $1,639,790 to the Thompson – Nicola Regional District and Kamloops and the surrounding area as part of a $63.8-million funding infusion to help communities with their spending priorities. From this amount the District of Barriere will receive $221,597, District of Clearwater $230,851, Sun Peaks $127,860, and Thompson Nicola Regional District $99,126.
This is being done in three ways:
• Through the Strategic Community Investment Fund (SCIF), communities across B.C. are receiving $30 million in Small Community and Regional District Grants to support investments in basic local government services.
• In this first SCIF instalment for 2011, the Province is also returning $30 million in net traffic fine revenues to eligible municipalities.
• In addition, being green has paid off in more ways than one as local governments will be reimbursed for the carbon taxes they paid in 2010. This amounts to $3.8 million.
Why this matters:
• The Strategic Community Investment Fund was established to stimulate local economies, create jobs and encourage overall growth.
• The Climate Action Revenue Incentive Program reflects the Province’s goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 33 per cent by 2020 through partnerships with local government.
Additional information:
• The Traffic Fine Revenue Sharing program assists municipalities that directly pay police enforcement costs. The grants come from ticket fines and court-imposed fines on violation tickets, and the amount of money a municipality receives is based on its contribution to total municipal policing costs.
• The Small Community and Regional District Grants are unconditional grants to local governments that assist them in providing basic services. Grant amounts are based on a formula that factors in a base amount, population and assessment values.
• Province announced the Climate Action Revenue Incentive Program to offset the carbon tax for local governments that have signed the B.C. Climate Action Charter. To be eligible for the program, communities are required to report annually on the steps they are taking – and progress they have made – to become carbon neutral by 2012.
• Communities that have signed the Climate Action Charter receive a conditional grant equal to 100 per cent of their carbon tax costs to support their climate change efforts.
The Local Government Small Community Traffic Fine funding paid to the District of Barriere totals $221,244, and the Climate Action Revenue Incentive Program paid $353; Clearwater received $228,586 from the SCTF, and $2,265 from the CARI program; and the TNRD received $78,995 and $10,131 respectively.
Find out more about the Climate Action Charter at: http://www.livesmartbc.ca/community/charter.html