In principle, most everybody would agree that working together to support one another is a good idea. Could this same approach work for our region's towns and communities?
One of the biggest challenges for political leaders in Newfoundland and Labrador - particularly rural Newfoundland and Labrador - is figuring out how to sustain the hundreds of little settlements that dot our coastline. The vast majority of these settlements depended on the fishery, many of them are remote, and few of them have any form of local government to provide basic community services. Today, the continued closure of the inshore cod fishery has meant that the next generation simply does not exist in these settlements, leaving an aging and shrinking population. This is occurring against a backdrop of rising expectations for the continuance of services - most of which have been traditionally provided, at no additional charge to residents, by the provincial and federal governments. In the face of increased budget scrutiny, the basic question of who continues to pay for these increasing costs is being hotly debated.
One of the potential solutions that have been floated is Regionalization. Regionalization would see geographic segments of the province grouped together into a single form of municipal government - and these regions would charge taxes to everyone in the region and in return, provide municipal services to the region. In theory, the economies of scale that would come with a larger “regional community” make sense - but in practice, it’s not that simple.
This past February, the Province, Municipalities NL and the Professional Municipal Administrators of NL (PMANL) issued a joint report entitled Joint Working Groupon Regionalization: Report and Recommendations . It laid out the case for a new regional governance structure that would respect existing municipalities while at the same time, bringing the 10% of the province's population that does not already live in municipalities (and pay local taxes), under a local government umbrella. Although all the operational details are yet to be determined, this hybrid system could have significant impacts on municipalities - and Clarenville in particular.
Our Region
Although this latest proposal has not defined its regions, past regional initiatives have defined our region as Bonavista-Clarenville-Isthmus. It is made up of many small, geographically separated communities (109) spread over a vast area - mainly along the coastline. Unlike the rest of the province, our region has a much greater proportion of unincorporated areas - in fact, of the approximately 26,500 people living in this region, 4 in 10 live outside municipalities - a rate 4 times greater than the provincial average.
This plan calls for each provincial region to create a Regional Council of about 15 volunteer representatives that would include a paid Chief Administrative Officer, support staff, as well other regional staff tasked with supporting the provision of services within the region. The report recommends that the taxes and fees collected from residents would fund these regional councils and the services they provide. Residents would only pay for the services they receive. The report does not give any indication that the Provincial Government would commit anything more than to fund the initial startup, so it is a reasonable assumption to suggest that the system will need to be self-supporting.
Potential Implications for the Town of Clarenville
If the system is indeed designed to be self-supporting, it would stand to reason that the larger centres within the population would have to be involved and ultimately stand for the majority of the cost of supporting the smaller unincorporated communities (In this region the larger centres would be Clarenville and Bonavista)
If municipalities such as Clarenville are to be part of this regional structure we will be required to contribute to this new governance structure. This report does not give assurances that the Province will not use this proposed system to simply shift costs to our towns. Incorporated areas already pay twice for the services they use through their provincial and municipal taxes. Unincorporated areas currently pay only one tax - provincial tax (and some service fees).
Missing Essential Elements?
The basic goal of any regionalization initiative is to reduce the costs of providing services. To move any regionalization plan forward there are some essential elements that I feel are missing in this report.
First, people are an essential ingredient to the success of any regionalization plan. People need to want to be part of the system, and they have to be willing to pay for it.
Second, both exiting Municipalities and people in the unincorporated areas need to see the benefits of regionalization. There needs to be a direct and obvious advantage to municipalities for signing onto a regional model. Without a clear benefit, regionalization simply will not happen.
Finally, if the system allows for a relatively low-cost rural option with all of the essential benefits of a municipality, people will gravitate to the low-cost option. This will take people out of the larger towns, and result in a more spread out - less efficient municipal structure. Encouraging people to move and live in larger municipalities will reduce service costs and concentrate our scarce resources. This may be politically unpopular but is essential to our sustainability.
Municipalities across the province will be anxious to see these issues addressed before considering signing on to this plan.
As Long as Doing Nothing Remains the Best Option…
Since the closure of the cod fishery in 1992, many small towns - most scattered along the coast, have been in decline - without some replacement industry, their future is certain. Sadly, on their current course, time will eventually see these communities disappear. Government is fully aware of this reality and the opportunity it presents to reduce the service burden without any political cost. As long as doing nothing is the most attractive option, everything else is just conversation.
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