Local Governance and Regional Collaboration for New Brunswick Final Report of the Select Committee on Local Governance and Regional Collaboration Fifth Session Fifty-fourth Legislative Assembly of the Province of New Brunswick January 2003 Final Report of the Select Committee on Local Governance and Regional Collaboration: Local Governance and Regional Collaboration for New Brunswick Committee Members Claude Williams, Chair Réjean Savoie MLA, Kent South MLA, Miramichi Bay Milton Sherwood, Vice-Chair Gaston Moore MLA, Grand Bay-Westfield MLA, Caraquet Jody Carr Eric Allaby MLA, Oromocto-Gagetown MLA, Fundy Isles Rose-May Poirier Marcelle Mersereau MLA, Rogersville-Kouchibouguac MLA, Bathurst Madeleine Dubé Roland Haché MLA, Edmundston MLA, Nigadoo-Chaleur Eric MacKenzie Elizabeth Weir MLA, Fredericton-Fort Nashwaak MLA, Saint John Harbour John Betts MLA, Moncton Crescent Final Report of the Select Committee on Local Governance and Regional Collaboration Published by: Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick P. O. Box 6000 Fredericton, New Brunswick E3B 5H1 Canada January 2003 ISBN 1-55396-058-0 Printed in New Brunswick CNB 1753 2 Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick Assemblée législative du Nouveau-Brunswick Final Report of the Select Committee on Local Governance and Regional Collaboration: Local Governance and Regional Collaboration for New Brunswick P.O. Box 6000 C.P. 6000 Fredericton, NB E3B 5H1 Fredericton (N.-B.) E3B 5H1 Tel: (506) 453-2506 Tél : (506) 453-2506 Fax: (506) 453-7154 Téléc. : (506) 453-7154 January 2003 To The Honourable The Legislative Assembly of The Province of New Brunswick Mr. Speaker: I have the pleasure to present herewith the Final Report of the Select Committee on Local Governance and Regional Collaboration. Your Select Committee was appointed during the Fourth Session of the Fifty-fourth Legislative Assembly by resolution of the House adopted December 18, 2001, and empowered to sit after prorogation of the session. This report is the result of your Committee’s public consultation and deliberations to explore acceptable and appropriate local governance models and regional service delivery structures, in response to three recommendations of the Minister’s Round Table on Local Governance. On behalf of the Committee, I wish to thank the many individuals and organizations who appeared before the Committee at the public hearings or submitted written briefs. As well, I wish to thank everyone who attended the hearings and took part in this important process. I also wish to thank the various individuals who provided assistance to the Committee, in particular, the resource person, Mr. Johnny St-Onge, for his invaluable advice and dedication throughout the process. Finally, I express appreciation to the members of the Committee and the Members of the Legislative Assembly who participated in the process, for their contribution in carrying out our mandate. This report, together with the Committee’s first two progress reports, effectively concludes the work of the Committee. Respectfully submitted, Claude Williams, MLA Chairman 3 Final Report of the Select Committee on Local Governance and Regional Collaboration: Local Governance and Regional Collaboration for New Brunswick Table of Contents Committee Members ____________________________________________________ 2 Foreword _____________________________________________________________ 6 Public Consultation - purpose, process and participation _________________ 7 Executive Summary ___________________________________________________ 10 Recommendations ____________________________________________________ 13 Overview of Recommendations ________________________________________ 15 PART 1 - Community Governance in Unincorporated Areas _______________ 23 I. What did the Round Table on Local Governance say about local/community governance in unincorporated areas? ........................................................................................................................ 23 II. What did the Select Committee hear from members of the public about the local service district and Rural Community?............................................................................................................................... 26 III. What did the Select Committee hear from members of the public about community governance? ....... 27 IV. What did the Select Committee hear from members of the public about the local governance options for unincorporated areas proposed by the Round Table? ........................................................ 33 V. Other solutions put forward by members of the public ....................................................................... 34 VI. Where should we go from here?.......................................................................................................... 34 VII. Recommendations on community governance in unincorporated areas.............................................. 37 PART 2 - Arrangements for the Shared Provision of Services ______________ 44 I. What did the Round Table on Local Governance say about the shared provision of services?............... 44 II. What did the Select Committee hear from members of the public about the shared provision of services? ............................................................................................................................................. 46 III. What did the Select Committee hear from members of the public about the Round Table’s recommendation for a Multi-Service Body? ......................................................................................... 47 IV. Other solutions put forward by members of the public ....................................................................... 48 V. Where should we go from here?.......................................................................................................... 49 VI. Recommendations on arrangements for the shared provision of services ........................................... 50 4 Final Report of the Select Committee on Local Governance and Regional Collaboration: Local Governance and Regional Collaboration for New Brunswick PART 3 - Planning Tools ________________________________________________ 55 I. What did the Round Table on Local Governance say about regional planning? .................................... 55 II. What did the Select Committee hear from members of the public about planning tools? ..................... 55 III. Where should we go from here?.......................................................................................................... 56 IV. Recommendation on planning tools.................................................................................................... 57 PART 4 - Public Participation in the Process of Change ___________________ 59 I. What did the Round Table on Local Governance say about public participation in the process of change?............................................................................................................................................... 59 II. What did the Select Committee hear from members of the public about public participation in the process of change?.............................................................................................................................. 59 III. Where should we go from here?.......................................................................................................... 60 IV. Recommendation on public participation in the process of change .................................................... 61 Conclusion____________________________________________________________ 64 Appendix A ___________________________________________________________ 65 Appendix B ___________________________________________________________ 66 Appendix C ___________________________________________________________ 67 Local Service Districts, Municipalities and Rural Community _____________ 70 District Planning Commissions _________________________________________ 71 Regional Solid Waste Commissions _____________________________________ 72 Crown Lands __________________________________________________________ 73 5 Final Report of the Select Committee on Local Governance and Regional Collaboration: Local Governance and Regional Collaboration for New Brunswick Foreword This Report builds upon the solid foundation laid by the reform to the local government system initiated 35 years ago and the improvements that have since been undertaken by successive provincial governments and the communities across the province. More importantly, the Report and nine recommendations of the Select Committee reflect and respond to the insightful and beneficial feedback received from the many New Brunswickers who made their views known to the Committee. These recommendations reflect previous reports, more particularly the report of the Commission on Land Use and the Rural Environment (1993), the report of the Municipalities Act Review Panel (1999) and, of course, the report of the Minister’s Round Table on Local Governance (2001). The Report recognizes that New Brunswick’s rural and urban communities have changed and will continue to change, and that the local government system needs to be reorganized in a gradual manner in order to accommodate those changes. Building upon the customs and practices of citizens in unincorporated areas, some of the recommendations are targeted at laying the foundation for the gradual acquisition of local powers in unincorporated areas in order to strengthen the governance