Reducing costs by consolidating municipalities: New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Ontario

Canadian Public Administration

Volumn 39, Issue 3, 1996, Pages 267-289

  Sancton, Andrew ^a  

^a UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN ONTARIO   (Canada)

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[No Author keywords available]

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EID: 0000749076     PISSN: 00084840     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1111/j.1754-7121.1996.tb00133.x     Document Type: Article

References (101)

1. Andrew Sancton, Local Government Reorganization in Canada since 1975 (Toronto: Intergovernmental Committee on Urban and Regional Research (ICURR) Press, 1991), p. 40.
2. Saskatchewan has also recently announced a program to reduce the number of its municipalities. Although cost-savings appears to be a significant motivating factor, the Saskatchewan case is not addressed in this paper. Abbotsford and Matsqui have recently merged in British Columbia, and consideration is being given to mergers in the northeast sector of the Lower Mainland (Port Coquitlam, Port Moody, Anmore, Belcarra and Coquitlam). In British Columbia, however, municipal amalgamations are not generally implemented without majority approval as expressed in a referendum in each of the affected municipalities. For a discussion of amalgamation issues throughout Canada in the early 1990s, see Allan O'Brien, Municipal Consolidation in Canada and its Alternatives (Toronto: ICURR Press, 1993).
3. Ontario, Royal Commission on Metropolitan Toronto, Report (Toronto: Commission, 1965), p. 24.
4. Ontario Municipal Board (OMB) Decisions and Recommendations of 20 January 1953 (the Cumming report) as quoted in Ibid., p. 26.
5. City of Toronto brief, as quoted in Ibid., p. 176.
6. Ibid., p. 177.
7. Ibid., p. 180.
8. Ontario, Committee on Taxation, Report, Vol. II (Toronto: Queen's Printer for Ontario, 1967), p. 509.
9. Ibid., p. 545.
10. For an account of the various campaigns for municipal amalgamation in Quebec, see Jean Meynaud and Jacques Léveillée, La régionalisation municipale au Québec (Montreal: Editions nouvelle frontière, 1973).
11. For criticism on this point and others, see Thomas J. Plunkett, "Criticism of Byrne Report," in Donald C. Rowat, ed., The Canadian Municipal System (Toronto: McClelland and Stewart), pp. 174-81.
12. New Brunswick, Royal Commission on Finance and Municipal Taxation, Report [typescript] (1963), pp. I:40-1.
13. Nova Scotia, Royal Commission on Education, Public Services and Provincial-Municipal Relations, Report (Halifax: Queen's Printer, 1974), p. 5:7.
14. Ibid., p. 5:19.
15. C. Richard Tindal and Susan Nobes Tindal, Local Government in Canada, 4th edition (Toronto: McGraw Hill-Ryerson, 1995), pp. 115-16.
16. United Kingdom, Royal Commission on Local Government in England, Economies of Scale in Local Government Services, Research Study 3, Cmnd. 4040-II (London, HMSO, 1969).
17. John Dearlove, The Reorganisation of British Local Government: Old Orthodoxies and a Political Perspective (London: Cambridge University Press, 1979), p. 71.
18. In her memoirs, Lady Thatcher notes that by the end of her term as prime minister, she had become convinced that even county councils needed to be abolished, thereby leaving a single-tier system of local government throughout England. See Margaret Thatcher, The Downing Street Years (New York: HarperCollins, 1993), p. 663. Since 1993, the English Local Government Commission has been recommending different forms of structural change, depending on the area under study. For an account of developments in England, Scotland and Wales during the 1990s, see Howard Elcock, Local Government, 3rd edition (London: Routledge, 1994), pp. 45-9 and 311-15.
19. In her memoirs, Lady Thatcher notes that by the end of her term as prime minister, she had become convinced that even county councils needed to be abolished, thereby leaving a single-tier system of local government throughout England. See Margaret Thatcher, The Downing Street Years (New York: HarperCollins, 1993), p. 663. Since 1993, the English Local Government Commission has been recommending different forms of structural change, depending on the area under study. For an account of developments in England, Scotland and Wales during the 1990s, see Howard Elcock, Local Government, 3rd edition (London: Routledge, 1994), pp. 45-9 and 311-15.
20. See V. Ostrom, R. Bish and E. Ostrom, Local Government in the United States (San Francisco: ICS Press, 1988), Chapter 7. For conflicting evidence on citizen satisfaction with services in municipally fragmented metropolitan areas, see W.E. Lyons, D. Lowery and R.H. deHoog, The Politics of Dissatisfaction: Citizens, Services and Urban Institutions (Armonk, N.Y.: M.E. Sharpe, 1992).
21. See V. Ostrom, R. Bish and E. Ostrom, Local Government in the United States (San Francisco: ICS Press, 1988), Chapter 7. For conflicting evidence on citizen satisfaction with services in municipally fragmented metropolitan areas, see W.E. Lyons, D. Lowery and R.H. deHoog, The Politics of Dissatisfaction: Citizens, Services and Urban Institutions (Armonk, N.Y.: M.E. Sharpe, 1992).
22. Michael Keating, Comparative Urban Politics: Power and the City in the United States, Canada, Britain and France (Brookfield, Vt.: Edward Elgar, 1991), p. 111.
23. Robert M. Stein, Urban Alternatives: Public and Private Markets in the Provision of Local Services (Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press, 1990), p. 5.
24. George A. Boyne, "Local Government Structure and Performance: Lessons from America?" Public Administration 70 (Autumn 1992), p. 343.
25. New Brunswick, Ministry of Municipalities, Culture and Housing, Strengthening Municipal Government in New Brunswick's Urban Centres (Fredericton: MMCH, 1992), pp. 9-10.
26. Ibid., p. 14.
27. New Brunswick, Ministry of Municipalities, Culture and Housing, Action Plan for Municipal Restructuring Process (Fredericton: MMCH, 1993).
28. J.E. Louis Malenfant and John C. Robison, Greater Moncton Urban Community: Strength through Cooperation (Fredericton: Ministry of Municipalities, Culture and Housing, 1994), p. 34.
29. Leo W. Burns, Tim McCarthy and John C. Robison, Miramichi City: Our Future - Strength through Unity (Fredericton: Ministry of Municipalities, Culture and Housing, 1994) p. 7.
30. Ibid., p. 29.
31. Harry Kitchen, "Presentation to Municipal Government Officials of Brant County on Municipal Restructuring," 21 December 1995, p. 11.
32. New Brunswick, Ministry of Municipalities, Culture and Housing, Municipal Restructuring/Review Announced (press release], Fredericton, 20 March 1996.
33. Task Force on Local Government, Report to the Government of Nova Scotia (Halifax: Task Force, 1992), p. 43. Counties in Nova Scotia are single-tier rural municipalities that generally surround incorporated villages, towns and cities.
34. Ibid., pp. 32-3.
35. Kevin Cox, "Halifax-area leaders fuming over plan for supercity," The Globe and Mail, 28 October 1994, p. A4.
36. Tindal and Tindal, Local Government in Canada, p. 138.
37. Sandra Jolly, "Letter of Introduction dated August 1993 to Nova Scotia, Department of Municipal Affairs," Interim Report of the Municipal Reform Commissioner, Halifax County (Halifax Metropolitan Area) (Halifax: n.p., 1993).
38. C. William Hayward, Ibid., p. 75.
39. Ibid., p. 38.
40. Ibid., pp. 39-41.
41. Ibid., p. 43.
42. Ibid., p. 44.
43. Ibid., p. 46.
44. Ibid., pp. 47-8.
45. See Gordon Tullock, The New Federalist. Adapted for Canadian readers by Filip Palda (Vancouver: The Fraser Institute, 1994) pp. 55-9.
46. UMA Group in Association with Doane Raymond, Analysis of Municipal Amalgamation. Prepared for the City of Halifax, the City of Dartmouth, the Town of Bedford and Halifax County Municipality (Halifax: n.p., 1995), p. 34.
47. Ibid., pp. i, and 31-3.
48. Ibid., p. 57.
49. Ibid., p. 58.
50. Ibid., p. 61.
51. An Act to Incorporate the Halifax Regional Municipality, S.N.S. 1995, c. 3.
52. Nova Scotia, Department of Municipal Affairs, Pictou Municipal Government Study Released, [press release], Halifax, 27 March 1996.
53. Ontario, Ministry of Municipal Affairs, Toward an Ideal County (Toronto: MMA, 1990). For Sarnia-Lambton, see Byron Montgomery, Annexation and Restructuring in Sarnia-Lambton: A Model for Ontario County Government? Local Government Case Studies 4 (London, Ont.: University of Western Ontario, Department of Political Science, 1990). For south Simcoe, see Allan O'Brien, Municipal Consolidation in Canada and its Alternatives (Toronto: ICURR Press, 1993), pp. 78-81.
54. Ontario, Ministry of Municipal Affairs, Toward an Ideal County (Toronto: MMA, 1990). For Sarnia-Lambton, see Byron Montgomery, Annexation and Restructuring in Sarnia-Lambton: A Model for Ontario County Government? Local Government Case Studies 4 (London, Ont.: University of Western Ontario, Department of Political Science, 1990). For south Simcoe, see Allan O'Brien, Municipal Consolidation in Canada and its Alternatives (Toronto: ICURR Press, 1993), pp. 78-81.
55. Ontario, Ministry of Municipal Affairs, Toward an Ideal County (Toronto: MMA, 1990). For Sarnia-Lambton, see Byron Montgomery, Annexation and Restructuring in Sarnia-Lambton: A Model for Ontario County Government? Local Government Case Studies 4 (London, Ont.: University of Western Ontario, Department of Political Science, 1990). For south Simcoe, see Allan O'Brien, Municipal Consolidation in Canada and its Alternatives (Toronto: ICURR Press, 1993), pp. 78-81.
56. Andrew Sancton, "Negotiating, Arbitrating, Legislating: Where was the Public in the London, Ontario, Boundary Adjustment, 1988-93." Prepared for the IPAC Study Team on Public Participation in Local Government as a chapter in a forthcoming publication edited by Katherine Graham and Susan Phillips.
57. An Act Respecting the Restructuring of the County of Simcoe, S.O. 1993, c. 33.
58. Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario, The Common Sense Revolution (Toronto: Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario, 1994), p. 17.
59. Ontario, Ministry of Municipal Affairs, New Tecumseth 4 Years After - An Interim Review of a Restructured Municipality (Toronto: MMA, 1995), p. 2.
60. Ibid.
61. Ibid., related pamphlet.
62. New Tecumseth 4 Years After, last page.
63. Al Leach, "Message to AMO '95 Delegates," in pamphlet related to Ibid.
64. New Tecumseth 4 Years After, pp. 11-12.
65. Ibid., p. 17.
66. Ibid., calculated from data in Table 7.
67. Ibid., p. 17.
68. Ibid., p. 11.
69. It is not cited in the bibliography. See Ontario, Task Force on the Future of the Greater Toronto Area, Greater Toronto: Report of the GTA Task Force (Toronto: Queen's Printer for Ontario, 1996), Appendix G, pp. 255-69.
70. Ibid., p. 230.
71. Ibid., p. 165.
72. Ibid., p. 254.
73. These letters can be examined in the exceptionally useful CD-ROM that accompanies the GTA task force report. It contains not only the printed report and background studies, but also copies of all the written submissions made to the task force.
74. Michael H. Boggs to GTA task force, "Municipal Restructuring Options for the GTA" [submission], [1995?], pp. 4-5. In Greater Toronto, CD-ROM version, Appendix file, pp. 3300-1.
75. Michael H. Boggs to GTA task force, "Municipal Restructuring Options for the GTA" [submission], [1995?], pp. 4-5. In Greater Toronto, CD-ROM version, Appendix file, pp. 3300-1.
76. Eli Comay to GTA task force, "Submission to the GTA Task Force: Structure of Municipal Government in the Metropolitan Toronto Region" [submission], 8 September 1995, p. 8. In Greater Toronto, CD-ROM version, Appendix file, p. 781.
77. Eli Comay to GTA task force, "Submission to the GTA Task Force: Structure of Municipal Government in the Metropolitan Toronto Region" [submission], 8 September 1995, p. 8. In Greater Toronto, CD-ROM version, Appendix file, p. 781.
78. Municipality of Metropolitan Toronto, Chief Administrator's Office, Corporate Planning Division to GTA task force, "There's No Turning Back: A Proposal for Change" [submission], August 1995, p. 11. In Greater Toronto, CD-ROM version, Appendix file, p. 1550.
79. Municipality of Metropolitan Toronto, Chief Administrator's Office, Corporate Planning Division to GTA task force, "There's No Turning Back: A Proposal for Change" [submission], August 1995, p. 11. In Greater Toronto, CD-ROM version, Appendix file, p. 1550.
80. City of Mississauga to GTA task force, "Running the GTA Like a Business" [submission], August 1995, p. 13. In Greater Toronto, CD-ROM version, Appendix file, p. 1759.
81. City of Mississauga to GTA task force, "Running the GTA Like a Business" [submission], August 1995, p. 13. In Greater Toronto, CD-ROM version, Appendix file, p. 1759.
82. Town of Markham, Chief Administrative Officer and Senior Management to GTA task force, "Submission of the Town of Markham to the Golden Task Force" [submission], September 1995, pp. 2-3. In Greater Toronto, CD-ROM version, Appendix file, pp. 1470-1.
83. Town of Markham, Chief Administrative Officer and Senior Management to GTA task force, "Submission of the Town of Markham to the Golden Task Force" [submission], September 1995, pp. 2-3. In Greater Toronto, CD-ROM version, Appendix file, pp. 1470-1.
84. Town of Ajax to GTA task force, "Submission to the Greater Toronto Area Task Force" and Town of Milton to GTA task force, "Bigger is Not Better, Smaller is Smarter: Second Submission to the GTA Task Force" [submission], September 1995, pp. 4-5. In Greater Toronto, CD-ROM version, Appendix file, pp. 55-6 and 1737-8, respectively.
85. Town of Ajax to GTA task force, "Submission to the Greater Toronto Area Task Force" and Town of Milton to GTA task force, "Bigger is Not Better, Smaller is Smarter: Second Submission to the GTA Task Force" [submission], September 1995, pp. 4-5. In Greater Toronto, CD-ROM version, Appendix file, pp. 55-6 and 1737-8, respectively.
86. Town of Ajax to GTA task force, "Submission to the Greater Toronto Area Task Force" and Town of Milton to GTA task force, "Bigger is Not Better, Smaller is Smarter: Second Submission to the GTA Task Force" [submission], September 1995, pp. 4-5. In Greater Toronto, CD-ROM version, Appendix file, pp. 55-6 and 1737-8, respectively.
87. Task Force on the Future of the GTA, Greater Toronto, p. 212.
88. The work has since been published. See Joseph Kushner, Isodore Masse, Thomas Peters and Lewis Soroka, "The Determinants of Municipal Expenditures in Ontario," Canadian Tax Journal 44, no. 2 (July 1996), pp. 451-64.
89. Price Waterhouse, "The Municipalities of Ottawa-Carleton: Study of the Financial Impact of One-Tier Government in Ottawa-Carleton," 27 August 1992, p. i.
90. Task Force on the Future of the GTA, Greater Toronto, p. 213.
91. Ibid.
92. Constituent Assembly on the Municipal Government System in Hamilton-Wentworth, Better Municipal Government: Final Report (Hamilton: Regional Municipality of Hamilton-Wentworth, 1996, p. 96.
93. Ibid., p. 33.
94. Ibid., p. 35.
95. Ibid., Appendix 6, p. 6.
96. Ibid., Appendix 6, p. 2.
97. Ibid., Appendix 6, p. 1.
98. William J. Day, "South Kent Restructuring Study: Township of Harwich, Town of Blenheim, Township of Raleigh," April 1996.
99. C. Richard Tindal, "There is an Alternative: Brief on Governing the Kingston-Frontenac Area," January 1996, p. 18.
100. Kingston/Frontenac/Lennox and Addington Governance Review Committee, "Proposal for the Reform of Local Governance: Kingston/Frontenac," 10 July 1996. The definition of "discretionary expenditures" is to be worked out by a committee of municipal treasurers or, failing that, "an independent accountant" (p. 28).
101. For an elaboration of this point, see Michael Keating, "Size, Efficiency and Democracy: Consolidation, Fragmentation and Public Choice," in D. Judge, G. Stoker and H. Wolman, eds., Theories of Urban Politics (London: Sage Publications, 1995), pp. 117-34.