The most important resolution at the 100th convention for the Saskatchewan Urban Municipalities Association (SUMA), dealing with revenue sharing, was passed unanimously by its members, including representatives of Weyburn city council.

Overall, the SUMA convention was very upbeat as the officials celebrated the province's centennial, and a wide variety of topics were dealt with at the gathering, including visits by all but two provincial cabinet ministers and by federal Finance minister Ralph Goodale.

The resolution cited as Weyburn's top priority was supported by all representatives at the convention, said Mayor Don Schlosser, who is also finishing one year of a three-year term as SUMA president.

"The revenue sharing was approved unanimously. The way it was left is we want to see the province throw in some extra money for this year, but at the same time sit down at the table with us and SARM and draw up a formula so we know there will be something in place, so we don't have to go back every year begging for money," said Schlosser.

The resolution asks for the revenue sharing pool to be reinstated to the level of the original commitments to revenue sharing, and once it is re-established, to index it to provincial tax levels for personal income, corporate income, fuel and retail sales taxes. SUMA also wants the province to commit to working with SUMA and SARM to enable them to maintain and improve their infrastructure as well as sustain the level of services each community requires.

One of the problems funding-wise is that the municipal and provincial governments are on different fiscal year-ends, said Schlosser, and the municipalities always have to wait for the federal and provincial budgets before finalizing their own, by which time the year is a quarter or a third done.

The convention also dealt with the federal "New Deal" as some details were released to the municipal officials by minister Goodale.

"Over five years Saskatchewan will get close to $148 million. The federal government has committed $5 billion to the provinces, territories and First Nations. We won't know how much is for 2005 until Finance minister Goodale tells us in the federal budget," said Schlosser. The federal budget has been set for Wednesday, Feb. 23.

The mayor noted the funding in the New Deal "is definitely new money. We've never had it before, and it's a definite step in the right direction. This is what we've been asking for, and it's something that's finally going to happen."

With the province's centennial this year, there was discussion both over where Saskatchewan has come over the past 100 years and also on what municipal officials see for the province's future, said Schlosser.

"A lot of discussion stemmed around the idea that if communities are going to succeed, and it doesn't matter what size they are, they had better start doing it on their own. Nobody's going to do it for them, and I don't think it's up to the council of the community to do that. It's up to the residents in general. Everybody needs to decide whether their community is going to survive," he said.

Most of the other resolutions supported by Weyburn were also passed, including one lobbying the government for an action plan to deal with the addictive drug of crystal meth, and one asking that the Fleetnet radio system remain in place handling 9-1-1 calls from around the province until an effective province-wide replacement is available with provincial funding.

Schlosser noted much expense and time was invested in setting Fleetnet up to handle 9-1-1 calls, and now SaskTel is informing municipalities that Fleetnet will be discontinued on Dec. 1, 2006, with an alternate system yet to be determined.

"This is a big concern to SUMA and its delegates. This is going to cost an awful lot of money. They really don't have anything in place to replace it, but we were assured by the minister the system would not be discontinued until there's a new system in place," said Schlosser.

As for the upcoming federal and provincial budgets, the government representatives were not very forthcoming with hints about what municipalities should be looking for. The premier indicated they have had to deal with such factors as the early frost and BSE impacting on the province's economy, with no guarantees these won't continue to be factors in 2005.

"Overall, it was a very good convention. We had a lot of interaction with speakers, and they seemed to really get involved," said the mayor.