COUNCIL INFORMATION PACKAGE

June 18, 2021

Table of Contents

Item From Subject Page 1 Municipality of Leamington National three-digit suicide and crisis 1 hotline 2 Township of Perry Capital Gains Tax on Primary 2-3 Residence 3 Fort Erie Capital Gains Tax on Primary 4-5 Residence 4 Sue Connor, Director of Transit Briefing Note – Transit Fleet Modelling 6-7 Study 5 Town of Oakville Gas Fired Electricity Generation 8-10 Phase Out 6 St. Catharines Lyme Disease 11-12

7 Hastings Highlands Support for 988 a 3 digit suicide and 13-14 crisis prevention hotline

1 Township of Perry PHONE: (705)636-5941 FAX: (705)636-5759

PO Box 70, 1695 Emsdale Road, Emsdale, ON P0A 1J0 www.townshipofperry.ca

June 17, 2021

The Right Honourable Justin Trudeau Prime Minister House of Commons Ottawa, ON L1A 0A6 [email protected]

The Honourable Premier of Legislative Building, Queen’s Park Toronto, ON M7A 1A1 [email protected]

Honourable and Dear Sirs:

RE: Capital Gains Tax on Primary Residence

Please be advised that at their last regularly scheduled meeting on Wednesday, June 16, 2021, the Council of the Corporation of the Township of Perry carried the following resolution:

“Resolution No. 2021-255 Moved By: Paul Sowrey Seconded By: Jim Cushman

Be it resolved that the Council of the Corporation of the Township of Perry hereby supports the resolution received from the Town of Fort Erie regarding the proposed Capital Gains Tax on Primary Residences; and

Further that a copy of this support be circulated to The Right Honourable Justin Trudeau, , The Honourable Doug Ford, , Honourable Scott Aitchison, MP Parry-Sound Muskoka, Honourable , MPP Parry Sound-Muskoka, The Town of Fort Erie, and All Ontario Municipalities.

Carried.”

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Enclosed please find a copy of the resolution supported by the Municipal Council for the Town of Fort Erie on May 31, 2021.

Thank you for your attention on this matter.

Sincerely,

Beth Morton Clerk-Administrator

Encl. c.c. Honourable Scott Aitchison, MP Parry Sound-Muskoka Honourable Norm Miller, MPP Parry Sound-Muskoka Carol Schofield, Clerk, Town of Fort Erie ([email protected]) All Ontario Municipalities

BM/ec

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Community Services

Legislative Services

June 1, 2021 File #120203

The Right Honourable Justin Trudeau The Honourable Doug Ford Prime Minister Premier of Ontario House of Commons Legislative Building, Queen's Park Ottawa, ON K1A 0A6 Toronto, ON M7A 1A1 [email protected] [email protected]

Honourable and Dear Sirs:

Re: Capital Gains Tax on Primary Residence

The Municipal Council of the Town of Fort Erie at its meeting of May 31, 2021 passed the following resolution:

Whereas primary residences are currently exempt from a capital gains tax, and

Whereas currently secondary and additional non-primary properties are subject to capital gains, and

Whereas the Federal Government is currently looking into a primary residence capital gains tax as they have recognized that affordable housing has become a serious issue in Canada, and

Whereas smaller communities including the Town of Fort Erie are seeing unprecedented higher selling prices that are outpacing prices in larger cities, and

Whereas many hard-working Canadians who have only a primary residence with no additional non-primary homes count on their home equity as financial aid to apply to upsizing or downsizing their home depending on their personal situation, and

Whereas a change in taxation to primary residences would be a significant financial blow to Canadians and would create an unfair, two-tiered taxation which could lead to depleted savings, inter-generational disparities, disparities among diverse groups such as seniors who may have a significant portion of their savings vested in their primary residence, as well as, reducing the ability of home ownership thereby a further, higher need for rentals, and

Whereas the Federal government could look at other means to slow down the rapidly escalating housing costs to improve housing affordability; …2

Mailing Address: The Corporation of the Town of Fort Erie 1 Municipal Centre Drive, Fort Erie ON L2A 2S6 Office Hours 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Phone: (905) 871-1600 FAX: (905) 871-4022 Web-site: www.forterie.ca

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The Right Honourable Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister Page two The Honourable Doug Ford, Premier of Ontario

Now therefore be it resolved,

That: The Federal Government cease further consideration of eliminating capital gains tax exemptions on primary residences, and further

That: A copy of this resolution be circulated to The Right Honourable Justin Trudeau, The Honourable Doug Ford, Premier of Ontario, All Members of Parliament, All Members of Provincial Parliament, The Regional Municipality of Niagara, and all Municipalities, for their support.

Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Yours very truly,

Carol Schofield, Dipl.M.A. Manager, Legislative Services/Clerk [email protected] CS:dlk c.c. All Members of Parliament All Members of Provincial Parliament The Regional Municipality of Niagara Ontario Municipalities

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To: Mayor and Members of Council

From: Sue Connor, Director of Transit

Cc: Tim Commisso, City Manager Heather MacDonald, Executive Director, Community Planning, Regulation & Mobility

Date: June 15, 2021

Re: Briefing Note – Transit Fleet Modelling Study

Burlington Transit engaged the Canadian Urban Transit Research & Innovation Consortium (CUTRIC) to model our fleet, to assist us in the planning for the introduction of electric vehicles. This work was completed in late 2020 as an addendum to our Five-Year Business Plan.

This predictive modelling study calculated the energy usage and energy efficiency under three different duty cycles using two BEB (Battery Electric Bus) configurations: Bus #1 and Bus #2 and considered winter operations with diesel heaters as well.

The modelling prediction showed that current BEB technology can fully electrify Burlington Transit’s fleet with a one-to-one replacement of diesel buses when applying both depot and on-street chargers. However, it is not currently possible to use depot-only charging to do so. To achieve 100 per cent electrification with depot-only chargers, Burlington Transit would need to purchase extra BEBs to replace the existing diesel buses.

In March 2021, we received $78,000 in grant money from the Province’s Ministry of Economic Development Job Creation and Trade (MEDJCT) fund that was administered through CUTRIC for projects. This grant is being used to engage CUTRIC to do further modelling of our fleet to understand the benefits of hydrogen fuel cell bus technology (FCEB) which will allow us to determine the best path forward for Burlington Transit in terms of greening our fleet.

On our behalf, CUTRIC applied in April 2021 for matching funding of $78,000 to FCM’s Green Municipal Fund to continue the predictive modelling and a detailed Zero Emission Bus (ZEB) rollout plan for Burlington Transit. This plan will include detailed rollout planning for BEBs and FCEBs including: capital costs (bus, charging infrastructure, fueling systems) and operational costs over the vehicle lifecycle. It will also review options for funding and/or financing for the City. We are currently waiting for approval of our FCM application.

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Briefing Note – Transit Fleet Modelling Study June 15, 2021 Page 2

This work is scheduled to be completed in Q1 2022 and will be presented in detail to Council including the full report prepared by CUTIC. This detailed work will set the foundation for an informed decision by Council and will be documentation that will be the basis for funding opportunities from other levels of government.

Please let me know if you have any questions on this update.

Suzanne Connor Director of Transit

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June 2, 2021

SENT VIA EMAIL/MAIL TO:

The Honourable Doug Ford, [email protected] Premier of Ontario The Honourable , Minister of the [email protected] Environment, Conservation and Parks The Honourable , Minister of [email protected] Energy, Northern Development and Mines Stephen Crawford, MPP, Oakville [email protected]

Effie Triantafilopoulos, MPP, [email protected] Oakville North – Burlington The Honourable , MPP, Wellington- [email protected] Halton Hills , MPP, Milton [email protected] Jane McKenna, MPP, Burlington [email protected] Region of Halton [email protected] City of Burlington [email protected] Town of Milton [email protected] Town of Halton Hills [email protected]

Association of Municipalities of Ontario [email protected]

Federation of Canadian Municipalities [email protected]

Subject: Notice of Motion - Gas Fired Electricity Generation Phase Out

At its meeting on May 25, 2021, Oakville Town Council approved the following resolution with respect to the subject item noted above:

WHEREAS, the Government of Ontario is planning to increase greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from Ontario’s gas-fired power plants by more than 300% by 2030 and by 500% or more by 2040, reversing more than 40% of the GHG reductions that were achieved by phasing out coal-fired power plants; and WHEREAS, GHG emissions are causing temperatures to rise in Canada at more than double the rate of the rest of the world, causing impacts to municipal operations and affecting Town of Oakville residents; and

WHEREAS the Federal government recently announced that Canada will enhance our emissions reduction target under the Paris Agreement – known as a Nationally Determined Contribution– by 40-45% below 2005 levels, by 2030

Town of Oakville | 1225 Trafalgar Road, Oakville8 L6H 0H3 | 905-845-6601 | oakville.ca Page 2 May 25, 2021 Subject: Notice of Motion - Gas Fired Electricity Generation Phase Out

WHEREAS, in February 2020, Oakville’s Town Council endorsed the Oakville Energy Task Force’s Community Energy Strategy (CES) which establishes a common vision for Oakville’s sustainable energy future that is affordable, clean and resilient and sets ambitious 2041 community-wide goals to improve energy efficiency, reduce GHG emissions and enhance the local economy.

WHEREAS, on June 24, 2019, Oakville’s Town Council unanimously endorsed a Climate Emergency declaration. The declaration carried forward a tradition of over 10 years of climate action and environmental leadership by the Town of Oakville, outlined in the Climate Emergency Report to Council; and

WHEREAS, there are feasible, cost-effective alternatives to increasing gas-fired electricity generation that support job creation and reduce GHG emissions, including, but not limited to; reducing energy demands through increasing the efficiency of Ontario’s building stock. Increasing distributed and renewable energy resources and increasing investment into municipal and community energy planning initiatives; and

WHEREAS, the Town’s Corporate Energy Conservation and Demand Management (CDM) Plan 2020 – 2024, has a target of 20% reduction in energy use and 30% reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in our facilities over the next five years. The Town of Oakville remains results driven by working collaboratively with our residents and local climate action organizations; and

WHEREAS, if the Town is to meet its targets under the CES and the CDM, the Ontario electricity grid must remain low carbon. The Made-in-Ontario Environment Plan commits to reducing our emissions to 30 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030.

THEREFORE be it resolved that the Council of the Town of Oakville requests the Government of Ontario:

1. To place an interim cap of 2.5 megatonnes per year on GHG emissions from Ontario’s gas-fired power plants and develop and implement a plan to phase- out all gas-fired electricity generation by 2030 to ensure that Ontario meets its climate targets; and

2. To direct Hydro One to build a new 20 km transmission line in Ottawa, increase our ability to import Quebec power by 17.5 billion kWh per year and direct the IESO to seek negotiated long-term electricity supply and storage (load balancing) contracts with Hydro Quebec to help phase-out our gas plants and to meet our electricity needs at a lower cost than re-building up to ten nuclear reactors; and

3. To direct the IESO to purchase Made-in-Ontario wind and solar power that can keep our lights on at a cost that is less than the price of nuclear electricity (e.g., 9.6 cents per kWh in 2021); and

Town of Oakville | 1225 Trafalgar Road, Oakville9 L6H 0H3 | 905-845-6601 | oakville.ca Page 3 May 25, 2021 Subject: Notice of Motion - Gas Fired Electricity Generation Phase Out

4. To ensure a fair, balanced and responsible climate-resilient approach in reducing our emissions intensity while providing energy from a provincial system that is reliable, resilient, and affordable; and

THAT the Council of the Town of Oakville directs the Clerk to distribute this resolution to Ontario's Premier and Minister of the Environment, Conservation, and Parks, Minister of Energy, Northern Development and Mines, and local MPPs as well as the Councils of the Halton municipalities and Ontario's municipal associations.

Should you have any questions regarding this matter or should you require additional information, please contact Vicki Tytaneck, Town Clerk at 905-845-6601, extension 2003, or email [email protected]

Sincerely,

Vicki Tytaneck Vicki Tytaneck Town Clerk

Town of Oakville | 1225 Trafalgar Road, Oakville10 L6H 0H3 | 905-845-6601 | oakville.ca

June 11, 2021

The Honourable Doug Ford, M.P.P. Premier of Ontario Legislative Building Queen's Park Toronto, ON M7A 1A1

Sent via email: [email protected]

Re: Lyme Disease Awareness Month Our Files: 35.31.99/35.23.12

Dear Premier Ford,

At its meeting held on May 31, 2021, St. Catharines City Council approved the following motion:

“WHEREAS May is Lyme Disease National Awareness Month; and WHEREAS the City of St. Catharines Strategic Plan includes improving livability for all; and WHEREAS Niagara Region is a high-risk area for ticks and Lyme Disease, and cases continue to increase; and WHEREAS Ontario health does not cover treatment and testing for all strains of Lyme Disease; and WHEREAS Lyme Disease is a crippling disease if not diagnosed and treated appropriately; THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED the City of St. Catharines call on the Ontario government to expand testing to all strains of Lyme Disease and improve the level of treatment and care for those diagnosed with this crippling disease; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED the Premier of Ontario, Ontario Minister of Health, local MPPs, Niagara Health, Niagara Region Public Health, all Ontario municipalities, and the Association of Municipalities of Ontario be sent correspondence of Council’s decision; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED the Mayor bring this matter to the attention of the Niagara Region and request that the Region build an awareness campaign with on-line resources for families with Lyme Disease.”

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If you have any questions, please contact the Office of the City Clerk at extension 1524.

Bonnie Nistico-Dunk, City Clerk Legal and Clerks Services, Office of the City Clerk :mb cc: Ontario Minister of Health Niagara Area MPPs Niagara Health Niagara Region Public Health Niagara Region Ontario Municipalities Association of Municipalities of Ontario, [email protected] Melissa Wenzler, Government Relations Advisor

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The Municipality of Hastings Highlands P.O. Box 130, 33011 Hwy 62, Maynooth, ON K0L 2S0 613 338-2811 Ext 277 Phone 1-877-338-2818 Toll Free

June 11, 2021 VIA EMAIL

The Honourable Patty Hajdu Federal Minister of Health House of Commons Ottawa, ON K1A 0A6 [email protected]

Re: Support for 988 a 3 digit suicide and crisis prevention hotline

Please be advised that on June 2, 2021, The Council of the Municipality of Hastings Highlands passed the following motion endorsing the 988 crisis line initiative to ensure critical barriers are removed to those in a crisis and seeking help.

Resolution 219-2021 Whereas the Federal government has passed a motion to adopt 988, a National three-digit suicide and crisis hotline; and

Whereas the motion calls for the federal government to consolidate all existing suicide crisis numbers into one three-digit hotline; and

Whereas the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has increased the demand for suicide prevention services by 200%; and

Whereas existing suicide prevention hotlines require the user to remember a 10-digit number and go through directories or be placed on hold; and

Whereas in 2022 the United States will have in place a national 988 crisis hotline; and

Whereas the Municipality of Hastings Highlands recognized that it is a significant and important initiative to ensure critical barriers are removed to those in a crisis and seeking help;

Now Therefore Be It Resolved as follows:

1. That the Municipality of Hastings Highlands endorses this 988 crisis line initiative.

2. That a letter demonstrating Hastings Highland's support be sent to MPP, Derek Sloan MP, the Honourable Patty Hajdu, Federal Minister of Health, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications (CRTC) and all municipalities in Ontario. 13 cc: -MP for Hastings–Lennox and Addington Derek Sloan [email protected] -MPP for Hastings–Lennox and Addington Daryl Kramp [email protected] -Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer, Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission – Ian Scott -All Ontario Municipalities

Regards,

Suzanne Huschilt

Municipal Clerk

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