Fort Providence, Northwest Territories August 5, 2020 – Canada’s communities are on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic and need immediate help as they adjust their public infrastructure priorities to our new reality. As part of continuing decisive action to address the pandemic, the Government of Canada supports building up modern, efficient and sustainable public infrastructure that ensures the health and safety of our communities, stabilizes our economy and provides access to essential services for all Canadians.

Today, Member of Parliament Michael McLeod announced that the Northwest Territories now has the option to allocate up to $57,077,683, representing 10% of its total allocation under the Investing in Canada infrastructure program, towards projects under a new COVID Resilience funding stream. This follows the announcement on July 30 by the Honourable Catherine McKenna, Minister of Infrastructure and Communities, of changes to the program to help address the current health crisis through quick-start, short-term projects.

Whether upgrading hospitals, long-term care homes and schools to deal with social distancing requirements, investing in energy efficiency or reliability projects for communities on established electricity grids under the Arctic Energy Fund, or supporting disaster mitigation projects that protect against floods and fires, these changes will help get more infrastructure projects underway faster, while continuing to support our long-term goals of building sustainable, economically vibrant, low-carbon, and inclusive communities.

Projects under the new stream will be eligible for a significantly larger federal cost share – up to 80 per cent for provinces, municipalities and not-for-profit organizations in provinces, and raising it to 100 per cent for territorial projects designated under the new stream. In addition to the new time-limited stream, a simplified application process for funding will ensure that projects can get underway as soon as possible.

These changes will benefit communities of all sizes, including rural Canada. In addition, rural and remote communities will have access to mobile and cellular projects that can be completed in the near-term.

Quotes

"Ensuring there is flexibility in federal programs is critical to their effectiveness in the North, especially as we work towards a recovery from the pandemic. Through the new COVID Resilience funding stream, the Government of Canada will make it easier to build projects that improve the health, safety, and quality of life of people here in the Northwest Territories."

Michael McLeod, Member of Parliament for Northwest Territories

Quick Facts

• Through the Investing in Canada infrastructure plan, the Government of Canada is investing more than $180 billion over 12 years in public transit projects, green infrastructure, social infrastructure, trade and transportation routes, and Canada’s rural and northern communities.
• To support Canadians during the COVID-19 pandemic, the over $33-billion Investing in Canada Infrastructure program now includes a new stream to directly address the pandemic, new eligible project categories, and faster approvals.
• The COVID-19 Resilience Stream will help other orders of governments whose finances have been significantly impacted by the pandemic by increasing the federal cost share for public infrastructure projects to 80% in the provinces, and funding 100% of the cost of projects in the territories and for projects with Indigenous recipients.
• To be eligible for funding under the COVID-19 Resilience stream, the project’s eligible costs must be under $10 million, construction must be started no later than September 30, 2021, and it must be completed by the end of 2021 (or by the end of 2022 in the territories and in remote communities).
• The Investing in Canada Infrastructure program is delivered through bilateral agreements with all provinces and territories to make unprecedented investments in public infrastructure.
• Funding delivered through the federal Gas Tax Fund was accelerated this year to provide $2.2 billion in one payment in June to help communities quickly move forward with infrastructure projects that will stabilize local economies.

Associated Links

Canada’s COVID-19 Economic Response Plan:

https://www.canada.ca/en/department-finance/economic-response-plan.html

More support for Canadians through the Safe Restart Agreement:

https://pm.gc.ca/en/news/news-releases/2020/07/16/more-support-canadians-through-safe-restart-agreement

Investing in Canada Plan Project Map:

https://www.infrastructure.gc.ca/gmap-gcarte/index-eng.html

Investing in Canada: Canada’s Long-Term Infrastructure Plan:

http://www.infrastructure.gc.ca/plan/icp-publication-pic-eng.html

The Federal Gas Tax Fund:

https://www.infrastructure.gc.ca/plan/gtf-fte-eng.html