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The coronavirus pandemic has thrown into relief a range of health, social, and economic challenges for municipalities in the Greater Toronto region. These challenges – such as lack of affordable housing, income inequality, the need to spur economic development, and the impact of climate change – all spill across municipal boundaries and need to be addressed through cooperation and coordination at the regional scale.
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Alan Harding, Chief Economic Adviser to the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, describes the development of Greater Manchester’s primarily “bottom-up” form of regional governance. Harding offers four key lessons that can be taken from the Greater Manchester experiment
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Across Canada, and particularly in Toronto, calls for increased municipal autonomy and the protection of municipal authority in the Canadian constitution have been getting louder. These issues have become no less significant following the onset of the COVID-19 crisis, which has revealed the limits of municipal powers and financial resources, while also demonstrating the importance of provincial and federal support for municipalities in difficult times.
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In an effort to provide financial relief to citizens and local businesses in response to the COVID-19 crisis, some Canadian municipalities are introducing or expanding property tax deferral programs. Designing Property Tax Deferrals answers 10 questions that municipalities should consider when designing property tax deferral programs, highlighting some considerations and implications.
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Zack Taylor and Alec Dobson examine the state of municipal empowerment by presenting an overview of municipal law in Canada’s 10 provinces. They identify similarities and variations within and among the provinces in how they articulate the provincial-municipal relationship, municipal powers and jurisdiction, the organization of municipal institutions, and financial powers.
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This report from Ontario 360, the Institute on Municipal Finance and Governance, and the Urban Policy Lab explores the relationship between the Province and Ontario’s 444 municipalities – how it has become so intertwined and why the time has come for a reassessment that ensures Ontarians receive the highest quality, most effective, and most efficient services from their governments.
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In this video, experts from different sectors discuss the role of public consultation in policy development within the context of increasing polarization and erosion of trust.
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This paper explores the place of municipalities in Canada’s democratic system and constitution, arguing that their status in Canada’s constitutional order ought to be recognized and secured.
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