Many of the financial problems facing the City of Edmonton currently can be traced back to the massive cuts in provincial funding that occurred in the early 90s. The Alberta Government balanced its books largely on the backs of municipalities, who have absorbed this downloaded debt in terms of crumbling infrastructure and higher taxes.

City Council must take a much tougher stance with the Alberta Government. The Province must return the revenue it stole away or it must free up room for the City to collect more of its own revenue, without forcing a greater burden on taxpayers.

Cities are delivering more of the programs and services that people require and expect, so cities require the revenue and funding to deliver them effectively. In particular, we should argue strongly for the Province to remove itself from the property tax area completely, by erasing the education portion of the property tax.

We have had far too many years of Edmonton City Councils accommodating the Alberta Government and trying to soft sell the changes we need to operate effectively. Edmonton represents a major portion of this province's population and the time has come for City Council to demand that our interests be equally served.