World Urban Forum - Ministry of Community, Sport and Cultural

Local Governance in

BC - Excellence Through

Collaborative Partnerships

Moderated by Tom MacDonald

Local Government Management Association

Local Governance in

British Columbia –

Collaborative Partnerships

Presented by:

Brian Walisser & Gary Paget, MCS

UBCM

MFA

157 municipalities

MCS

World Urban Forum, June 19 – 23, 2006

Citizens

27 regional districts

CIVICINFO

LGMA

Canada in the World

Canada


British Columbia in Canada

British

Columbia


British Columbia





Canada’s western-most province

Total Area: 945,000 km 2

 Population: 4,196,000





GVRD = 51% population

Canada’s 3rd largest metro area

 Highest Point: Mt Fairweather, 4,663m

 Vancouver Is. = larger than Belgium

 95% uninhabited


Beautiful British Columbia

City of Vancouver: Downtown & Westend



Sushwap Lake:

Okanagan Valley

City of Nelson


Pitt Lake: Pitt Meadows


Victoria’s Fairmont Empress Hotel



Tumbler Ridge Town Hall


Scope of BC Local

Government System

Protection

– police & fire

Utilities

– water, sewer

Transportation

– local roads

Community Services

Regulation – property, people

Regional & local planning

Schools

Hospital capital

Rural police / roads

Health services

Redistributive programmes

Highways

Social welfare

Mostly

Local / Regional District

Provincial – Some

Local Tax Contribution

Mostly Provincial


Key Elements of BC’s

Local Government System

 Responsibility – assigning matters to the most suitable stream of government

 Financial independence – providing financial and other resources adequate to meet service demands

 Democratic decision-making – ensuring good democratic & accountability processes

 Intergovernmental collaboration – voluntary partnerships; collective institutions


Responsibility: Multiple Streams

 In a complex world, complex organizations are natural, inevitable

 Flexible system and multiple streams needed to handle issues at proper scale:

 Strong municipalities for local services



Regions “on tap”, not “on top”



Regions built on the concept of “soft” boundaries

 Regions able to launch inter-local partnerships


Responsibility: The Balance





Regional Districts

“Borrowed” Powers

1000’s of partnerships

Municipalities

 Most people (>85%)





Most $$ spent (>80%)

Broad powers


Finance: Overview









BC local governments are:

Highly self-sufficient (especially larger cities)

Highly autonomous…very limited oversight

Subject to relatively few financial restrictions

Beneficiaries of collaborative bodies that perform collective tasks


Sources of Municipal Revenue

4%

9%

Other

Transfers

Taxes

56%

31%

Fees

RD

19% MUN

81%

Share of Total Local

Government Spending


Decision-making:

Strong Local Democracy

 Overall goal is to match citizen demands with their willingness-to-pay

 For this to work, citizens need to:

 Be empowered and informed

 Have influence over (some) proposed decisions

 Have confidence in integrity of elected officials


Decision-making:

Checks and Balances



Direct provincial oversight reduced…but remains strong over finances

 Judicial supervision on procedure

 Administrative watchdogs and legislated protections in place (local and provincial)

*

Note: no powerful tribunal to upset local land use or financial decisions


Intergovernmental Collaboration









A key system attribute

Not a “concession” by

Provincial government

Instead is a major design principle

Revealed most clearly by:

 Multitude of inter-local partnerships

 Collaborating partner bodies


Key Ingredients for “Success”

Independent,

Autonomous

Local

Government

Units

Resilience &

Continuous

Adaptation

Articulate

Local

Government

Association

Commitment

To Long-term

Capable,

Strategic

Department

(National or

Sub-national)

Solutions


Brian Walisser, Executive Director

Brian.Walisser@gov.bc.ca

Ministry of Community Services

Local Government Policy and Research

6 th Floor, 800 Johnson Street

Victoria, BC

Canada

V8W 9T1


UBCM

MFA


MCS


Citizens


CIVICINFO

LGMA

The Collaborators

Presented by:

Todd Pugh, CivicInfo

Collaborative Organizations

 High degree of collaboration between different interests within the system

 Relationships developed over time and based on respect each interest has for each other

 Practical recognition that there are opportunities to achieve benefits through collaboration


History of Collaboration

















Union of British Columbia Municipalities

(UBCM): 1905

Local Government Management Association

(LGMA): 1919

Ministry of Community Services: 1934

Regional Districts: 1965

Municipal Finance Authority of BC

(MFA-BC): 1970

British Columbia Assessment (BCA): 1974

Municipal Insurance Association of BC: 1987

CivicInfo BC: 1998


Reasons for Collaboration







Intergovernmental Relations:

 Union of British Columbia Municipalities (UBCM)

 Ministry of Community Services (MCS)

Management Capacity Building:

 Local Government Management Association

(LGMA)

Collaborative Helper Organizations

 Municipal Finance Authority of BC (MFA-BC)

 British Columbia Assessment (BCA)

 Municipal Insurance Association (MIA)

 CivicInfo BC


Dimensions of Collaboration

 Collaboration within the local government sector

 Local government to local government

● BCA, MFA, MIA, CivicInfo

 Collaboration between the local government sector and others

 Provincial, Federal, First Nations, Private Sector,

International

● MCS, UBCM, LGMA


Intergovernmental Relations

 Union of British Columbia Municipalities

 Represents local government interests to the provincial and federal governments







Represents all 184 BC local governments - large and small - and facilitates inter-governmental cooperation

100% membership for 26 consecutive years, membership is voluntary

History of collaborative policy development with the provincial government


Management Capacity Building

 Local Government Management Association

 Promotes professional development and leadership excellence in local government

 Cooperation with educational institutions

 Job posting service

 Newsletter


Collaborative Helper

Organizations

 CivicInfo BC

 Comprehensive website for local government information







Co-operative partnership between 9 associations and 180 local governments

Library of sample documents - bylaws and policies

Job postings, event listings, news stories, directories



Organizations

 Municipal Finance Authority of British

Columbia









Owned by local governments

Credit union or co-operative to pool borrowing needs and provide low-cost financial services

Pools risk to achieve high credit rating

All local governments including smallest enjoy lowcost borrowing



Organizations

 The Municipal Insurance Association of

British Columbia

 Non-profit liability insurance cooperative

 Maintains liability coverage needed for local government financial security

 Stabilizes liability insurance costs

 Provides risk management education



Organizations

 British Columbia Assessment

 Province-wide assessment of land and improvements for local government taxation purposes

 Independent from local governments

 Consistent valuations regardless of location


Case Studies:

The What and Why of Collaboration

 Topics

 Intergovernmental Relations: UBCM

 Collaborative Organizations: Pooled Borrowing through the Municipal Finance Authority

 Management Capacity Building: Local Government

Management Association



Todd Pugh, Executive Director tpugh@civicinfo.bc.ca

CivicInfo BC

737 Fort Street

Victoria, British Columbia

Canada

V8W 2V1

UBCM

MFA


MCS


Citizens


CIVICINFO

LGMA

Case Study #1:

Intergovernmental

Collaboration

Presented by:

Richard Taylor, UBCM

A Changed Relationship

Legislation

Regulation

Mandates

Provincial

Proposals

Issues

Local


A Changed Relationship

Joint policy development and implementation

 From issues to policy development and legislation

 By provincial and local governments


Intergovernmental Collaboration and the Community Charter









Recognition as an order of government

Acceptance of inter-dependence and value of

horizontal relations

Principles of municipal-provincial relations:

 Mutual respect

 Notice and consultation

 Resolution of differences

Specific tools:

 Consultation requirements

 Consultation agreements

 Dispute resolution


Intergovernmental Collaboration:

Operationalizing the Principles

 Developing Consultation Agreements:

Concurrent regulatory authority

 Reconciling provincial and local interests:

Resorts Approval Harmonization

 Providing advice: Regulatory Best Practices


New Intergovernmental Collaborations

 With provincial government in program delivery

 With First Nations

 With federal government on





Cooperation agreements:

●

●

2-way (local-provincial)

3-way (federal-provincial-local)

New Deal for Cities and Communities:

●

● first major tripartite agreement delivered by UBCM


Intergovernmental Collaborations

 Why we did it

 What have been the results


Intergovernmental Collaborations:

Key Lessons Learned

 Have a shared vision

 Embrace incrementally



Don’t need to be a big organization to be successful



UBCM couldn’t do alone



Accept that it doesn’t always work





UBCM’s 100% membership

 Low level of fiscal dependency (members and UBCM)

 Provincial government support

 Internal consensus

 Policy based, non-partisan organization

 Diversity is natural not artificial


Richard Taylor, Executive Director rtaylor@civicnet.bc.ca

Union of British Columbia Municipalities

60-10551 Shellbridge Way

Richmond, British Columbia

Canada

V6X 2W9


UBCM

MFA


MCS


Citizens


CIVICINFO

LGMA

Case Study #2:

Pooled Borrowing

Presented by:

Steve Berna, MFA-BC

MFA-BC Clients

 All 184 local governments:

 Municipalities are both owners and clients





1-share per local government = 1 vote = systemwide equality

Guarantee each others’ debt

 Receive the same interest rate on debt regardless of size

 Smallest: Population 238

 Largest: Population 2.2 million


MFA-BC Credit Ratings

 Proper financial controls can lead to:

 MFA-BC

Moody’s

*Aaa

Standard & Poor’s

*AA+





Province of BC

Canadian Banks

Aa+

Aa-

AA+

AA-

* All 184 local governments receive these credit ratings regardless of size


Interest Rates – 10 year

(fixed rate)

Chartered Banks =

“AAA” Ontario Municipalities =

European “AAA” Borrowers (KFW) =

Province of Ontario (largest province) =

MFA-BC =

4.95%

4.80%

4.74%

4.70%

4.66%*

* All local governments receive this rate regardless of size


What does MFA-BC Finance?


Governance:

Controlled by local governments

 Each of 27 regional districts has a representative on board

 NO provincial representatives

 Chair and Board of Trustees is composed of elected officials


MFA-BC Governance

Chair

Annually elected from

Members of the Authority

9 Trustees

Annually elected from

Members of the Authority

35 Members

Annually appointed from

Regional Districts

27 Regional Districts

Representing 157 Municipalities


Surpluses: Yours to keep



When MFA’s investments earn in excess of budgeted amounts, excess is returned to the municipalities

 Total excess returned since 1991:

» $525 million


Financial Self-sufficiency

 No senior level of government support- not a hardship to taxpayers

Programs

Tax Levy

95%

5%


MFA-BC: Size Matters



MFA Originated in 1970 with “A” credit rating



In 1980 awarded “AAA” credit rating





Total debt outstanding

Investments managed

= $5 billion

= $2.8 billion

 Leasing under administration = $60 million

 No MFA client has ever defaulted on a loan payment


Why is MFABC’s Credit Rating Above the Provincial Government?

 Joint and several borrowing



Local governments guarantee each other’s debt

 Borrowing power formula- borrowing limits







Provincial government sets municipal debt limit and approves borrowing

Each municipality has its’ own “debt limit”

Formula is based upon each municipality’s revenues

 Debt Reserve Fund (DRF)





Protection for investors in case of non-payment by local government (has never occurred)

DRF is equivalent to twotimes the largest day’s interest obligation


How can others achieve?

 Contact MFA-BC - We will share our ideas at no cost

 Work with your senior levels of government to:

 Establish guidelines





Convince local governments to work together

Build safeguards against “payment defaults”

 It works – MFA-BC has done it since 1970



 100% membership of local governments

 All members are equal and jointly guarantee debts

 Size provides economies of scale

 Independence from provincial government but cooperate with provincial government



Establishes ‘rules of the game’

 Watches over local fiscal health


Steve Berna, Executive Director steve@mfa.bc.ca

Municipal Finance Authority of British Columbia

737 Fort Street


Canada

V8W 2V1


UBCM

MFA


MCS


Citizens


CIVICINFO

LGMA

Case Study #3:

Capacity Building

Presented by:

Tom MacDonald, LGMA

Case Study 3: Capacity Building

 Approximately 33,000 thousand employees in British Columbia’s 184 local government jurisdictions

 No minimum level of education required however strong support and encouragement for professional development



 Board of Examiners

 Recognized in legislation

 Competency-based program of studies

 Employees at all levels encouraged to participate

 Involvement of Universities and Colleges

 Certification by three party board: MCS, LGMA,

UBCM

 Encouragement of continuing professional development



 Collaboration with Universities and Colleges

 Identification of skills and competency needs

 Development of curriculum

 Partnerships in program delivery



 Local Government Management Association

 Municipal Administration Training Institute (MATI)

● Foundation

● Leadership

● Communications

● Managing Employees

 Workshops


Teamworks Coaching

 Local governments helping local governments

 Professionals helping professionals



 Broad-based organization

 Independence

 Collaboration with partners within the local government system and outside

 Provincial support


Tom MacDonald, Executive Director tmacdonald@lgma.ca

Local Government Management Association of British Columbia

737 Fort Street


Canada

V8W 2V1



 Independent and self-sufficient local governments

 Strong unitary municipal association

 Collaborative organizations

 Strong and supportive provincial ministry

 Vision and commitment to the long-term


UBCM

MFA


MCS


Citizens


CIVICINFO

LGMA

Local, National, International Assistance

Tom MacDonald

Executive Director tmacdonald@lgma.ca

Steve Berna,

Executive Director steve@mfa.bc.ca

Richard Taylor

Executive Director rtaylor@civicnet.bc.ca

Local Government

Management Association of British Columbia

737 Fort Street

Victoria, British Columbia,

Canada

V8W 2V1

Municipal Finance Authority of British Columbia

737 Fort Street

Victoria, British Columbia,

Canada

V8W 2V1

Union of British Columbia

Municipalities

60-10551 Shellbridge Way

Richmond, British Columbia

Canada

V6X 2W9


Local, National, International Assistance

Brian Walisser

Executive Director

Brian.Walisser@gov.bc.ca

Ministry of Community Services

Local Government Policy and Research

6th Floor, 800 Johnson Street


Canada

V8W 9N7

Todd Pugh

Executive Director tpugh@civicinfo.bc.ca

CivicInfo BC

737 Fort Street


Canada

V8W 2V1


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Teamworks Coaching

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