The Ontario government is providing $31,474,969 to help the Regional Municipality of York, the City of Markham and the Town of Whitchurch-Stouffville address ongoing COVID-19-related operating costs.
The new financial relief will help ensure the delivery of critical services during the pandemic and keep capital projects on track.
Allocation of regional funding is as follows: The Regional Municipality of York – $21,129,902; City of Markham – $8,994,111; and Town of Whitchurch-Stouffville – $1,350,956.
“This announcement of $8,994,111 for Markham and $1,350,956 for Whitchurch-Stouffville will come as very good news for our municipal governments as they work to budget for new and unexpected expenses related to COVID-19,” said Paul Calandra, MPP for Markham-Stouffville.
This announcement is part of the province’s $500 million investment to help ensure the stability of Ontario’s 444 municipalities as they plan for the year ahead. The funding is being prioritized to help municipalities hardest hit by the pandemic and can be used for things like personal protective equipment, cleaning supplies and by-law enforcement.
“Municipalities are important partners in the fight against COVID-19,” Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy said. “We know the global pandemic has created significant financial challenges for communities across the province. That’s why we have been there with support from the very beginning. I encourage our federal partners to step forward with additional investments as all three governments work together to protect people’s health and jobs.”
This provincial investment builds on the $1.39 billion in operating funding that was provided to municipal partners through the joint federal-provincial Safe Restart Agreement. The second phase of the Safe Restart Agreement was allocated to all Ontario municipalities in December, to ensure that no community entered 2021 facing an operating deficit from 2020.
Photo: “I encourage our federal partners to step forward with additional investments as all three governments work together to protect people’s health and jobs,” said Finance Minister Peter Bethenfalvy.
