PUSLINCH – Councillors here want the province to understand the importance of OMPF funding to the local community.
On Jan. 9, council reviewed the update on the 2019 Ontario Municipal Partnership Fund (OMPF). from Minister of Finance Vic Fedeli.
“We inherited a $15 billion deficit and over a third of a trillion dollars in net debt,” Fedeli wrote.
“The previous government was spending more than $40 million more a day than they took in.
“This is simply unsustainable.
“This is why we are making every effort to restore fiscal balance to the province.”
As part of those efforts the province is reviewing transfer payments and other provincial supports, “which is why details of OMPF allocations will be released later than in past years.”
Puslinch councillor John Sepulis asked what the county and other lower-tier municipalities are doing on this matter.
Mayor James Seeley said at the county “it is coming up in every conversation … it affects the budget of every municipality.”
Seeley noted Warden Kelly Linton penned a letter directly to Fideli stating how important the funding is.
Seeley added the mayors of Wellington’s lower tier municipal governments were asked to write similar letters, as they might hold more “weight” than a resolution from the county.
“I sent a draft to deputy clerk Nina (Lecic) today – trying to reiterate how important this funding is to rural communities,” said Seeley.
He added Puslinch “is very fiscally responsible … we are a rural community surrounded by large urban municipalities.”
He noted a delegation will send the message to provincial officials at the upcoming ROMA conference.
“It is definitely on the front burner and we are trying for collaborative pressure,” said Seeley.
Members of council supported the letter being sent.
Seeley’s letter states, “The Ontario Municipal Partnership fund is an integral part of the township’s budget.
“The monies received from the fund account for 10.6% of our total revenue sources.”
Seeley said “any reduction of this funding would place significant challenges to our community to maintain current service levels.”
He stated Puslinch remains an ideal candidate to for the funds.
He added, “It is our hope that current government will continue to support this fund for all municipalities as we are not unique in the fact that this funding is a significant percentage of revenue.”
