Thank you, Mr. Chair, and good morning.
As mentioned, my name is Dan English and I'm chief administrative officer with the Halifax Regional Municipality.
Today I'm here on behalf of Mayor Peter Kelly, who's tied up with the Halifax explosion ceremonies that are taking place.
Thank you for the opportunity to discuss the priority issues facing Halifax and to highlight areas where collaboration with the federal government is needed. The four priority issues I wish to discuss today are fiscal imbalance, infrastructure funding support, environment, and public safety and crime prevention.
Under fiscal imbalance, I believe it would suffice to say that Halifax supports the position of the big city mayors' caucus and their recommendation that the federal government permanently share the equivalent of 1ยข of the GST annually with the cities. The rationale for this proposal is well documented. Most Canadian municipalities are highly dependent on property taxes. In fact, in HRM, property taxes make up approximately 76% of our total revenue.
With the recommendation of the big city mayors' caucus, along with continued federal investments such as the gas tax, GST rebate, infrastructure funding, and the development of a new national transit strategy, municipalities would be able to diversify their revenue base beyond just property taxes. This would be similar to initiatives under way in the U.S., Europe, and the U.K., where governments are providing their municipalities with new and innovative financial tools and revenue-sharing opportunities.
This topic leads right into the next issue, i.e. the ever-increasing infrastructure deficiency in Canadian municipalities. Halifax, like many Canadian municipalities, needs increased infrastructure funding support. As one of the older cities in Canada, Halifax faces significant pressures regarding the age of its infrastructure compared to much of the rest of the country.
We currently have an annual infrastructure funding gap of approximately $50 million. Continued federal funding programs for infrastructure are of paramount importance to us. The recently announced Building Canada plan is a positive step to assist municipalities.
I'll just note a couple of areas where Halifax requires federal support. The Atlantic gateway is positioned to become to Halifax what the Pacific gateway is to Vancouver, and it will establish Canada as the bridge between Asia, Europe, and the U.S. The four key modes of transportation represented on the Halifax Gateway Council, i.e. air, sea, road, and rail, account for over $1 billion in wages each year in Halifax and a total economic impact of $3.7 billion. Greater investment, integration, and partnership are needed to ensure the Atlantic gateway grows and is recognized and promoted as the east coast logistics hub for North America.
Under transit, another area, the HRM has implemented a metro link, a bus rapid-transit program that reduces hundreds of car trips per day. Building on this, the planned HarbourLink fast ferry project would have further environmental and economic benefits.
Halifax urges continuation of federal funding programs such as the urban transportation showcase and the public transit fund to continue to support strategic transit usage.
Under the environment, HRM is considered a Canadian leader in environmental sustainability. We were the first major urban area to reach the 50% waste diversion targets, and we are nearing completion of the harbour solutions project, which will be the largest cleanup of a saltwater body in Canada. Next week--a week from tomorrow, in fact--we'll be celebrating, along with our provincial and federal government partners, the opening of the first of three facilities in Halifax. Enabling funding from the federal government will help boost many projects that assist in reducing greenhouse gases and meet federal, provincial, and local goals.
Under public safety and crime prevention, the mayor's round table on violence is a process that is now just basically completing a strategy that has all levels of government working together to reduce crime and improve quality of life for our residents. HRM continues to look forward to federal funding aimed at adding law enforcement officers to municipal police agencies.
In closing, I would like to mention that Halifax is the fastest growing municipality in the Atlantic region, but we are not large enough to function without strong links to the federal and provincial governments. While other major cities benefit from diverse types of taxation and greater cost sharing from their provincial governments, the Nova Scotia fiscal reality does not enable the same level of investment. Greater federal investment is much needed and appreciated.
For our part, we take our role and contribution to finding solutions seriously. We continue to work through implementing our region's first economic strategy, an essential component in defining our future and ensuring that future will be within our grasp. As Gerald Keddy noted earlier, the irony of this morning is that 90 years ago today, our community was devastated by the Halifax explosion, but we did recover due to the generosity of individuals, other governments, and friends from abroad. Today is an opportune time for us to remember the importance of working together to achieve positive outcomes for the good of our community.
Thank you again for the opportunity to present today.