WINDSOR, Ont.—After Premier Kathleen Wynne called on municipalities in the morning to come to terms with new tax powers, Progressive Conservative Leader Patrick Brown dismissed any additional revenue tools in the afternoon.

“I’m not looking at new taxes,” Brown told reporters Monday at the Association of Municipalities of Ontario annual meeting in Windsor.

PC Leader Patrick Brown speaks with the media after addressing AMO's 2016 conference. (Geoff Zochodne/QP Briefing)

PC Leader Patrick Brown speaks with the media after addressing AMO's 2016 conference. (Geoff Zochodne/QP Briefing)

The Liberal government has been reviewing the Municipal Act and mulling over new revenue tools for municipalities, which are facing rising costs with only property taxes to fall back on. Despite the premier saying earlier in the day that municipalities were interested in extra sources of revenue, Brown cited the Liberal government’s reversal on expanding land-transfer taxes as proof there’s no appetite for new fees.

“As soon as a bunch of municipal leaders heard from constituents who said the last thing they want is new taxes, the government took a different tune,” Brown said.

Rather than new taxes, the PC leader suggested the provincial government tighten up its own operations by avoiding “vanity” advertising and spending less on bureaucracy, and better funding municipalities.

The Tory leader addressed the AMO conference in the afternoon, launching a three-pronged assault on the government by slamming rising hydro rates, the alleged downloading of health-care duties onto municipalities, and attempting to poke holes in the province’s infrastructure record.

Brown, to a fairly full room, said the electricity rates were hindering local businesses and blamed the government’s green energy contracts and “fire sale” of Hydro One. “We have to stop kneecapping municipalities from growing their economies,” he told the conference.

Brown also criticized the government for foisting some health-care responsibilities onto municipalities, like the increasing amount of time locally funded police forces are spending on mental-health calls.

“It’s not right, it’s not fair and it’s another example of the province not doing their job,” said Brown.

Lastly, Brown said the Liberal government was all talk on infrastructure spending. He said they were slashing key programs like the Ontario Municipal Partnership Fund.

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Twitter: @geoffzochodne

AMO 2016: Brown ‘not looking at new taxes’ for municipalities

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