News

CBC's Blue Sky had a story on Wednesday on the rise of supposedly flushable items, and the problems they cause for towns and cities across the province. They interviewed our CEO, Laurent Mougeot, about the trouble muncipalities encounter when folks try to flush it and forget it. Hear the full story on the Blue Sky website.

This morning, SUMA emailed out the registration information and link to our members. We have also posted all the relevant information on the Convention 2014 page of the website. Some registration dates to note: Thursday, November 7 - Registration opens Friday, December 20 - Early-bird deadline Tuesday, January 14 - Last day to cancel delegate and/or Partners' Program registrations We look…

The distribution of fine revenue from traffic offenses has been a longstanding issue for SUMA members. Right now, only 108 towns in the province receive fine revenue (excluding those with their own RCMP agreements or municipal police forces), and that revenue is entirely dependent on the ticketing officer indicating that the offense occurred within the municipality. The revenue from any ticket…

A recent update from the Federation of Canadian Municipalities tells us that the federal government has confirmed that the Building Canada Fund will be in place by March 31, 2014. This means that members need to be thinking about their priorities, and identifying potential projects now. We will keep members updated when we hear more.

We encourage members to submit resolutions anytime throughout the year, but for Convention 2014, council resolutions must be received by Friday, November 22, 2013. Submit them via email to smckenzie@suma.org. The Resolution Committee and SUMA’s policy committees will review the resolutions, combine similar ones, and provide a package to all members before Monday, December 31, 2013.…

The Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) of Western Canada still have room at their conference, happening next week in Saskatoon. Register now to be sure you have the chance to see speakers like Chief Perry Bellegarde, and Wendy Mesley. Sessions on everything from P3s to managing the risks of fraud and corruption take place over the four days, so there is something for everyone. More…

The last week has brought two pieces of news showing success in SUMA's advocacy efforts. On the provincial level, last week the government announced that Saskatchewan will have a provincial athletics commission operating here by next summer. SUMA lobbied the government to establish this commission beginning in 2010, knowing that changes to the Criminal Code were coming and would make…

Multi-Material Stewardship Western (MMSW) has submitted the Waste Packaging and Paper (WPP) Stewardship Plan to the Ministry of Environment for review. The stewardship plan is available to read on the MMSW website. MMSW has revised the plan since the June 11 Consultation in Saskatoon. However, SUMA continues to have concerns with the use of Manitoba’s program costs for the first two years…

Wednesday, August 14, 2013 is the final deadline to receive the $150.00 bonus payment for the 2013 Municipal Recycling Bridge Funding Program. Existing participants must submit a signed declaration form, a submission form, and actual tonnage receipts from January to June 2013. If your municipality does not submit the required documentation by August 14, 2013, it will be ineligible to receive the…

The planned expansion of Martensville High School has just received a helping hand from the Government of Saskatchewan, who partnered with the Prairie Public School Division to contribute an estimated $1.42 million to the project. Upon completion of the expansion, students and the community will have access to the new multi-purpose facility attached to the high school, and the additional funds…

The Union of Quebec Municipalities (UMQ), issued an appeal this week to the entire municipal sector for solidarity in helping the town of Lac-Mégantic and its residents rebuild their community in the wake of the tragedy caused by the July 5 derailment and explosion of an oil tanker train. Their association issued a press release yesterday, and sent it to sister associations across Canada,…

The Municipal Recycling Bridge Funding Program (also known as the Bridge Funding Program) has launched for another year. The program will accept new applicants until August 14, 2013, and municipalities who received funding last year need not reapply. To be eligible for the 2013 Bridge Funding Program, municipalities must: have established and maintained paper and cardboard recycling…

See the President's Update for June 2013, with notes from the June Board meeting.

The SUMA (SUMA) will honour the commitment of Communities of Tomorrow (CT) by co‐ordinating a $200,000 fund to support innovation in municipal infrastructure, and housing a variety of important documents created by CT. Communities of Tomorrow, the public‐private partnership focused on advancing municipal innovation, is winding down atthe end of this month. For more information, read the…

The summer edition of Urban Voice included an article on protecting infrastructure by harvesting rainwater with rain barrels. If you're looking for more information on other ways to harvest rain water, you may want see this release from the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Coporation (CMHC) on systems that collect and reuse rainwater within homes.