$50M of Additional Financial Assistance and a Financial Contribution That is Better Adapted for Municipalities

Acting to Prevent Natural Disasters

QUEBEC, July 23, 2018 – The Minister of Municipal Affairs and Land Occupancy, Minister of Public Security and Minister responsible for the Montreal region, Mr. Martin Coiteux, is pleased to announce the extension of the application of the Cadre pour la prévention de sinistres (CPS) (strategy for natural disaster prevention) until March 31, 2022.

Recall that the CPS is the Ministry of Public Security’s financial assistance program which allows the government of Quebec to grant funding to municipalities in support of their prevention work for, among others, risk mitigation against submersion and coastal erosion, landslides, earthquakes, certain Northern hazards as well as forest fires.

The extension of the CPS will therefore allow a sum of $50M to be granted over 2021 and 2022, to encourage disaster risk mitigation. In a context of climate change, the number of natural disasters, and their level of intensity, is expected to rise.  That is one of the reasons that the CPS is being extended. In its previous form, the CPS foresaw investments until March 31, 2020.

In addition, the criteria for awarding funding has been adjusted and eased for municipalities, in order to establish their contribution in accordance with their capacity to pay. Henceforth, the calculation for their financial contribution will take their standardized property value into account. The lower limit of the municipal contribution could also be lowered beyond 15% of the value of the work in some cases, as provided in the new parameters.

Quotes:

The Government of Quebec supports the municipalities who choose to invest in natural disaster prevention in order to mitigate risks to which their citizens are exposed. The consequences of climate change will be more and more apparent over the coming years, so it is of the utmost importance to be proactive.

– Martin Coiteux, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Land Occupancy, Minister of Public Security and Minister responsible for the Montreal region

Quick Facts:

• With the addition $50M, the CPS program’s total investments reach $146M.
• The $50M increase includes $20M of investment to prevent the submersion and coastal erosion, announced in the 2017-2018 budget, as well as the $10M for flooding announced in the 2018-2019 budget and scheduled for 2121 and 2022.
• The modification will mean that municipalities’ contributions toward prevention work will be reduced and established according to their financial capacity.
• The CPS has been extended until March 31, 2022, to financially support risk mitigation and treatment for two additional years.
• To date, the CPS program has protected close to 4,000 people.
• For each dollar invested by the government of Quebec in risk mitigation, close to $21 in goods and infrastructures were protected.