Transfer of a portion of federal gasoline tax revenues and the Government of Quebec's contribution
Saint-Lazare, Quebec, November 5, 2012 – The City of Saint-Lazare today hosted a sod-turning event to mark the beginning of work at the Sainte-Angélique drinking water treatment plant. The Honourable Senator Jacques Demers, on behalf of the Honourable Denis Lebel, Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities and Minister of the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec, and Guy Leclair, Member of the National Assembly for Beauharnois, on behalf of Sylvain Gaudreault, Quebec Minister of Municipal Affairs, Regions and Land Occupancy, Minister of Transport and Member of the National Assembly for Jonquière, were present.
"Thanks to these improvements, residents of Saint-Lazare and the surrounding communities will continue to receive safe, clean drinking water,"
said Senator Demers. "Infrastructure investments are an important contributor to job creation and economic growth in Canada, and I am pleased that this project will support the health of local residents, while contributing to the region's economic future."
"Including Quebec's contribution, a total of $2.1 billion in government funding is now available to Quebec municipalities for the 2010-2014 period under the Gas Tax Fund. It is a stable, reliable and predictable source of funding for carrying out projects that are essential to the development of our communities and improving residents' quality of life. This new funding will allow the City of Saint-Lazare to plan its local infrastructure investments according to its needs and priorities,"
added MNA Leclair.
The City of Saint-Lazare will direct a part of its allocation to restoration work and upgrades to the Saint-Angélique drinking water treatment plant in order to obtain maximum output from the existing facility.
For the period of 2010-2014, the City of Saint-Lazard will receive close to $4.3 million from the federal Gas Tax Fund and contribution from the Government of Quebec. The City directed a part of this sum towards this project. The Government of Canada will be contributing more than $690,000 to this project and the Government of Quebec more than $285,000.
The Gas Tax Fund provides stable, long term funding to local governments to help them build and revitalize public infrastructure. In December 2011, the Government of Canada passed legislation to make this fund's $2 billion annual investment permanent. Each year, the province of Quebec receives close to $464 million for municipal public infrastructure and transit infrastructure.
The objective of the federal-provincial agreement on the transfer of a portion of federal gasoline tax revenues signed by Quebec and Canada in 2005 is to provide funding for the renewal of municipal and local infrastructure focusing on sustainable development, in particular in relation to drinking water, wastewater, local roads and public transit. From 2005 to 2010, Quebec municipalities received $1.15 billion from the Gas Tax Fund, in addition to a contribution from the Quebec government amounting to $475.7 million. The Canada-Quebec agreement, extended in 2009, provides for a further $1.85 billion in Government of Canada support from 2010 to 2014. With the addition of Quebec's contribution of over $907 million, total funding will amount to $2.76 billion.
Additional information:
For additional information about investments in infrastructure and to stay up-to-date with Web feeds, visit www.infrastructure.gc.ca. For further information about the Government of Canada's Economic Action Plan, visit www.actionplan.gc.ca.
Contacts:
Geneviève Sicard
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities
613-991-0700
Marie-Eve Imonti
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of Municipal Affairs, Regions and Land Occupancy
514-873-2622
Miguel Lemieux
Political Advisor
Office of the MNA for Beauharnois
450-377-3131
Caroline St-Pierre
Communications Directorate
Quebec Department of Municipal Affairs, Regions and Land Occupancy
418-691-2015
Infrastructure Canada
613-960-9251
Toll free 1-877-250-7154
