CCA Pleased with Permanent Gas Tax Fund Transfers to Aid Municipalities with Infrastructure

Ottawa, Canada, October 06, 2011 --(PR.com)-- The Canadian Construction Association (CCA) is pleased to see the government moving forward with its commitment to introduce legislation to make permanent the annual transfer of funds to municipalities under the Gas Tax Fund. This marks the first time a federal infrastructure program has become a permanent fixture.

“As the only permanent federal support for municipal infrastructure development and maintenance, this program is critical to the redevelopment and modernization of our nation’s infrastructure,” said Michael Atkinson. “Canada’s cities are the economic engines that will continue to drive growth and prosperity for future generations of Canadians. Unfortunately, without access to growth taxes, many municipalities are struggling to keep pace with the growing demands our aging infrastructure is placing on their municipal tax base. Making permanent an annual per-capita transfer under the Gas Tax Fund will help to address their infrastructure needs.”

The Gas Tax Fund has been a feature of federal infrastructure support and redevelopment programs since its introduction in 2005. The fund helps municipalities pay for the development and maintenance of core public infrastructure, such as local roads and bridges, drinking water, wastewater systems, communication energy systems, and public transit. CCA urges parliamentarians to pass the legislation quickly and consider indexing the fund to ensure its overall contribution is not diminished over time as a result of inflation.

In budget 2011, the federal government committed to the introduction of legislation to make the annual $2 billion transfer under the program permanent. CCA has been an advocate of federal participation in the funding of our nation’s infrastructure through long-term support programs. CCA looks forward to the timely passage of the bill through the House of Commons and the Senate, and to working with the federal government on the development of a long-term successor program to the existing Building Canada Plan that expires in 2014.

Canadian Construction Association is the voice of the national non-residential construction industry. It represents over 17,000 members in an integrated structure of some 70 local and provincial construction associations.

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