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Local councillors don't back CH funding request STEPHANIE THIESSEN Special to The IFP Conservation Halton (CH) is asking the Region of Halton to fork over about 11 per cent more funding than last year for its budget. The budget, which was approved by the CH board of directors at a recent meeting, calls for $4,495,794 from Halton Region, which is about a half a million more than the previous year. Two board members present at the meeting-- Bryan Lewis and Bob Inglis, both Halton Hills councillors-- opposed the municipal funding request. It might seem like a large percentage, but CH chair Brian Penman said it's not a huge number of dollars and still makes up less than one per cent of the Region's budget. And, he said, the support is necessary. "It's designed to bring us slowly and surely into a healthier situation," he said. The total amount of funding being requested by CH's supporting municipalities-- which includes Halton and to a much smaller degree Peel, Hamilton and Puslinch-- is $4,933,797, subject to approval by the watershed municipal councils. Municipal funding accounts for 24 per cent of CH's total funding in its 2007 budget. User fees make up the largest portion, with 43 per cent of the total funding. CH's total expenditures outlined in the 2007 budget are $20,234,735. That's an increase of about $2.8 million over last year, and includes the tax-supported and non-taxsupported programs. The non-tax-supported programs are the conservation areas and Glen Eden Ski and Snowboard Centre, which are supported largely by user fees. It was also recommended at the meeting that the 2007 Pay for Performance Policy percentage rates be adopted based on percentage rates of 0 to 4 per cent. The 2007 budget report details that among the major expenses are a best practice recommendation that CH add 21 staff positions over three years. For 2007, eight staff positions have been added. Also, watershed management capital structures are aging and need replacement and major upgrades. CH has been down a difficult road recently, Penman said, particularly after the Province "cut every conservation authority's budget in half" in 1996. The environmental agency found itself with depleted reserves and no money for capital projects, he said. Last year, the Region committed to upping its support by almost 25 per cent, he said. The budget will be presented to the Region of Halton in January.