Study finds cost sharing superior to revenue sharing among municipalities

The Alberta Association of Municipal Districts and Counties (AAMDC) today released  its position paper Cost Sharing Works: An Examination of Cooperative Inter-Municipal Financing. The paper identifies cost sharing as the most beneficial solution  for municipalities  to addressfinancing regional initiatives.

“We believe Albertans are best served by paying for benefits received, which is the basis of cost-sharing arrangements,” says AAMDC President Bob Barss. “It is by far the most common form of cooperative financing between Alberta municipalities. Cost sharing has served  them well in the past, and it continues  to be the best means of sharing the financial impact of inter-municipal initiatives.”

The paper identifies cost sharing as preferable to revenue sharing as it is within the mandate of municipal government, and  creates cost equity, cost effectiveness and  cost efficiency. It also provides accountability to the taxpayer. Revenue sharing, in its various forms, sacrifices these principles.

How and why municipalities are debt-ridden—unable to sustain the range and level of services demanded by their communities—is a much-debated issue. Cost Sharing Works looks at what local Alberta governments are empowered to do under legislation. It also examines what other local governments throughout North America have  successfully  attempted to meet  the challenges of financing local government.

See also Cost Sharing Works -- Frequently Asked Questions

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