We note that prior to this March, the ruling PUP controlled all municipalities except San Ignacio, Benque and San Pedro. Today, the Opposition UDP controls 8 of 9 Councils. Some have interpreted GOB?s apparent reluctance to meet the request of the Councils as an abandonment of residents, due to the PUP?s tremendous loss at the polls earlier this year.
Despite political tensions, San Pedro Mayor, Elsa Paz, the president of the Belize Mayors? Association and representatives of all other municipalities, met, perhaps symbolically, at the Central Bank in Belize City with Prime Minister, Hon. Said Musa, on Wednesday to discuss their proposals to Central Government to improve the financial viability of the various City and Town Councils. But the bad news for her association is, they have not made the inroads they had envisioned.
The Government issued a report on that meeting today, and the code phrase in that release was ?Study and Analysis.? Effectively, the Government has remained non-committal?at least for the moment?and has told the mayors countrywide that the situation should be ?studied? before any decision is taken.
It has become clear, especially in light of the recent controversy with the Belize City Council, that the local government bodies are financially dependent on Central Government. The heads of the various municipalities are now asking Government to introduce new ways in which they could share in national revenue.
Already, the municipalities get a monthly subvention from Central Government. The biggest subvention of $1.5 million goes to Belize City, but on a per resident basis, the subvention is on the lower end of the range. San Pedro gets the least: $69,000 for the entire year, or $8.21 per resident, while Corozal gets $394,400, or $44.82 per resident.
One of the propositions from the Mayors? Association is that Government level the playing field so that all municipal residents get the same entitlement?$45.20 a head, which is what the residents of Punta Gorda are reportedly getting. The proposal would see subventions increase from a gross of $4.1 million a year to $6.7 million.
But that is not all that the municipalities are asking. According to the Government release, ?The Mayors? Association proposed that arrangements be made for revenue sharing from the Environmental Tax, urban traffic management by Councils, duty-free fuel for Councils, and for the introduction of a subvention formula to create horizontal equity distribution.?
Mayor Paz said that in regards to traffic fees, only Belize City collects revenue in that area. In all other municipalities, the collections from traffic go to Central Government. Meanwhile, she said, the Councils have to use their funds to repair and maintain roads.
Paz said that if the Government cannot help them financially by increasing their subventions, it can at least give them the authority to manage the traffic, and more autonomy to manage and collect other revenues.
They are also requesting head tax contributions for Belize City, as well as an allocation of the environmental tax to assist with solid waste expenses, and the complete devolution of intra-town and intra-City traffic, Mayor Paz added.
She said that Government has indicated that it could increase the entertainment tax by 1% to assist the Councils, and it has also agreed to revisit the subvention formula. However, most mayors are not agreeing to a tax increase, because they think Belizeans are already ?taxed out.?
Still, said Paz, the meeting ended without any concrete responses to their requests.
The Mayors? Association, she said, meets again next week, before they return to Central Government for another head-to-head.
We asked Mayor Paz to explain why all municipalities find themselves in the same rocking boat. ?The subventions are inadequate,? she replied. The San Pedro subvention has been the same for the past 20 years, she told us.
?Every year, there is an increase in population and the budget is not enough to sustain the municipalities,? she concluded.
The Mayors? Association has been asked to ?submit a proper plan? to Central Government.
?The Government of Belize advised that in order for consideration of these or any other proposals, comprehensive Study and Analysis would be a pre-requisite for decision-making,? said GOB?s release issued today. ?Such Study and Analysis would be undertaken to determine the cost to manage municipalities, current and potential revenues, and the level of assistance necessary to provide the required services.?
It added: ?The Mayors admitted that their current revenue base, particularly property taxes and garbage fees, were not performing well, and they agreed to undertake the Studies and Analyses.? [The emphasis on study and analysis is ours.]
Central Government conceded that even the Councils are not alone in their financial hardships: ?Prime Minister Hon. Said Musa said that both Central and Municipal Governments were facing financial challenges and expressed his Government?s strong willingness to support the cause for better municipal management.?