"I conclude that there is room for the federal government to do more in investing the fuel taxes collected in Saskatchewan into the roadways of Saskatchewan. The taxes you collect, you spend on the roads; the taxes we collect, we spend on the roads, and now I think it's time for Ottawa to do the same." -- Premier Calvert speaking to the Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities, March, 2003.

REGINA: The Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) is calling the municipal gas tax revenue sharing deal between Saskatchewan and the Government of Canada a bad deal for motorists and taxpayers.

"Foremost for taxpayers and motorists is whether this new money for municipalities will fill any potholes or fix sidewalks and bridges," said CTF Saskatchewan Director David MacLean. "This will not happen under this deal."

The Order in Council passed by the Saskatchewan cabinet this month contains specific provisions preventing most of the money from going toward road maintenance. The agreement explicitly states funding will only go to projects that "enhance environmental sustainability outcomes."

"Environmentally sustainable" is defined as projects which "improve the quality of the environment and contribute to reduced greenhouse gas emissions, clean water, or clean air."

"No amount of fancy bureaucratic language is going to make Saskatchewan road maintenance appear to reduce greenhouse gas emissions," said MacLean. "This will be just like infrastructure programs announced in the past - full of promise, but no help for our crumbling roads."

"Bottom line is the City of Weyburn doesn't need a light rail transit line, and Prince Albert isn't exactly Toronto," said MacLean.

The Western Provincial Transportation Ministers Council, to which the Government of Saskatchewan is a signatory, released a report in March of this year calling for $15 billion in new investment into roads. The report notes that the total municipal infrastructure shortfall is estimated at $57 billion.

"This deal does not address the desperate state of municipal and inter-provincial infrastructure," said MacLean. "Why is our provincial government ignoring their own report "

In 2002, the CTF proposed a Municipal Roadway Trust - a practical model for returning half of the federal gas tax revenues directly to municipalities to spend on roads and highway development and maintenance. Also included in the proposal was a call to reduce fuel taxes on gasoline by five cents a litre. More than 120,000 Canadians have signed a petition supporting the plan, including 1,500 mayors and councilors from over 450 municipalities.