Please accept the following…

Please accept the following comments relating to this proposed bill:

1. Municipalities elect officials through a democratic process to make decisions in the best interest of the municipality to serve the local context of the municipality. Proposed provincial bills such as this will remove the voice of the local municipality on how it wants to plan and grow and in my opinion, is not a democratic approach.

2. The Municipal Class Environmental Assessment (MCEA) process was developed back in the 1990s to guide good planning of municipal infrastructure including road and transportation projects. This process already provides a mandated mechanism for municipalities to review, plan, evaluate and design projects under an established and documented process and must consider all impacts of the project, incl. mandatory public and stakeholder engagement . The proposed bill will de-value the MCEA process that has been around for 3 decades.

3. There are countless communities, especially rural communities across all of Ontario that are in need of improved provincial infrastructure, financial support and administrative assistance. The province of Ontario should focus its efforts on improving those needs rather than becoming involved in local and regional decision-making.