TAMRMS#: B06
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Bylaw 24/2019 Municipal Public Utilities (1st Reading)
Presented by: David Leflar, Director, Legal & Legislative Services
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RECOMMENDATION(S)
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1. That Bylaw 24/2019, the Municipal Public Utilities Bylaw, be read a first time
2. That Bylaw 24/2019 be referred to the Governance, Priorities and Finance Committee meeting of August 12, 2019 for further discussion before being scheduled for second and third readings by Council.
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PURPOSE OF REPORT
To recommend that Council give first reading only to Bylaw 24/2019 in order to provide an opportunity for public input and full discussion at the Governance, Priorities and Finance Committee of the objectives of the Bylaw in the context of the City’s strategy to develop additional revenue sources through non-traditional utility services.
ALIGNMENT TO PRIORITIES IN COUNCIL’S STRATEGIC PLAN
N/A
ALIGNMENT TO LEVELS OF SERVICE DELIVERY
Bylaw 24/2019 will not have an immediate or direct impact on service levels but will be an important foundational piece to assist in maintaining and enhancing service levels related to utilities, in the future.
ALIGNMENT TO COUNCIL DIRECTION OR MANDATORY STATUTORY PROVISION
N/A
BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION
The Municipal Government Act has for many years contained a section that allows a council to pass a bylaw prohibiting any person from providing the same or similar utility services as those provided by the municipality or by a subsidiary corporation of the municipality. Historically, municipalities whose utility services consisted only of traditional potable water supply, wastewater collection/treatment, stormwater management and garbage disposal, have not often taken advantage of this statutory power. This is because the financial and regulatory barriers to entry, and the “natural monopoly” nature of such utilities services, made it very unlikely that any private sector corporation would emerge to challenge the exclusivity of municipa...
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