Saskatchewan premier Brad Wall confirmed Jan. 31 that municipalities will receive revenue sharing grants worth a record $216.8 million in the next budget.
He told delegates to the Saskatchewan Urban Municipalities Association (SUMA) convention in Saskatoon the government would keep its promise to give communities the amount equal to a full point of the provincial sales tax.
The announcement comes a year after he broke that same promise when potash revenue fell.
The 2011-12 budget will be announced in March.
Rural municipalities will get $62.9 million, up from $48.6 million in this current fiscal year. Urban municipalities will get $138.7 million and northern municipalities will get $15.2 million.
Revenue sharing is based on population.
Anticipating more flooding this spring, Wall also announced $22 million for flood prevention measures.
The Saskatchewan Watershed Authority, the provincial corrections, public safety and policing ministry, SUMA and the Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities will:
- provide technical assistance such as engineering to design flood protection works;
- build flood protection works in communities and around rural residences and farmsteads;
- sand bag and clear snow and obstructions from channels and culverts;
- test water supplies affected by flooding.
