2025

Whereas highways in British Columbia are managed by the Ministry of Transportation and Transit, who oversee the maintenance, service and safety standards, which includes setting and adjusting speed limits; And whereas certain highway intersections, that are the only access to neighbourhoods, experience a high collision frequency: Therefore be it resolved that UBCM request that the Ministry of Transportation and Transit amend the current warrant process criteria to include community safety concerns when requesting a review of speed limits for municipalities and regional districts experienc

Whereas rezoning applications within 800 metres from the intersection of a controlled access highway with any other highway requires approval from the Ministry of Transportation and Transit; And whereas Kamloops is like many other local governments which have many kilometres of highways through their jurisdiction; And whereas minor rezoning applications are considered those not requiring a Traffic Impact Assessment by generating no more than 100 new trips in the peak hour; And whereas the approval times for rezoning applications can be many months: Therefore be it resolved that UBCM ask

Whereas the current Community Charter allows for taxpayers to become delinquent on their property taxes over a period of three years; And whereas the Local Government Act further exacerbates the collection of taxes for an indefinite number of collection years regarding mobile homes; And whereas property tax arrears significantly impact the operating capacity of municipalities thereby forcing significant tax increases or limits to essential services: Therefore be it resolved that UBCM ask that the provincial government revise the Community Charter by reducing the number of years a propert

Whereas the US government is imposing tariffs on manufacturers in many local government jurisdictions; And whereas federal and provincial officials are considering counter tariffs on US products; And whereas federal and the provincial officials want to encourage more made in Canada goods: Therefore be it resolved that UBCM ask the federal government to set aside funds collected from US counter tariffs for local governments to access to create economic opportunities for local Canadian manufacturers to invest in their communities.

Whereas local governments within British Columbia are required to undertake major construction projects to provide services such as roads, community sewer systems and community water systems to service properties within their jurisdictions; And whereas these works involve the excavation of lands, which may include First Nations lands, during the construction phase of such projects; And whereas the provincial Heritage Conservation Act requires that all archaeological sites and findings be recorded and documented in accordance with the legislation and the costs incurred by local governments

Whereas the Province of BC is experiencing a housing crisis and the number of unhoused individuals is increasing; And whereas municipalities and regional districts have adopted certain bylaws that prohibit encampments within the municipal or regional district boundary, yet these bylaws cannot be enforced when the homeless encampments are on provincial land; And whereas some of these homeless encampments on provincial land are on the sides of roads and highways, and therefore fall under the purview of Provincial ministries: Therefore be it resolved that UBCM lobby the Province for a singl

Whereas conflicts can arise when the provincial Ministry responsible for mining chooses to override local government zoning to approve new gravel pits and other aggregate activities in areas not zoned for such purposes; And whereas provincial Aggregate Management Principles state that the Ministry should work with local governments to reduce conflicts that can develop when aggregate activities are proposed in urban and populated rural areas; And whereas consideration of the provincial Aggregate Management Principles is at the discretion of the Statutory Decision Maker within the responsib

Whereas airports located on Crown Land have Crown Grants from the Province of BC to operate and must adhere to the ancillary airport uses listed in the Land Use Operational Policy; And whereas the list of airport uses is restrictive and limited to what is considered necessary for the viable operation and management of a public airport; And whereas capital renewal and operational costs for Crown Grant Airports continue to increase and are far outpacing the revenue generating opportunities from ancillary land use leases, and the socio-economic impacts from Crown Grant Airports is significan

Whereas the Ministry of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness does not compensate local governments for providing road rescue service in response to highway accidents within their jurisdiction; And whereas provincial funding mechanisms fail to account for the full cost of road rescue, including training, equipment and operational costs; And whereas ICBC, despite being the Provinces primary auto insurer, does not contribute to road rescue response costs; And whereas rural and remote municipalities provide road rescue services within and outside their jurisdictions, placing additional

Whereas the Province of BC faces the worsening effects of climate change, the disasters resulting in significant costs to rebuild homes and farms; And whereas many residents and properties impacted by wildfire are located in rural, unincorporated areas outside of fire protection with these residents reporting that trying to obtain insurance has been met with refusal by insurance providers; And whereas wildfire is considered to be an insurable event and therefore not eligible for Disaster Financial Assistance: Therefore be it resolved that UBCM ask the Province to commit to working with t