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Cities such as Vancouver face too many demands, with too few revenue dollars. So could a city like Vancouver go bankrupt?

Not likely. Though Vancouver and other cities are seeing, during the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic, significant revenue decreases.

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Vancouver’s Mayor Kennedy Stewart, in a plea for help last week, showed a survey that highlighted COVID-19’s potential impact if 25 per cent of taxpayers don’t pay their 2020 property taxes. At the same time, Vancouver laid off 1,500 workers, Surrey 2,000.

To help out, the B.C. government’s minister of finance announced business tax cuts, deferred tax payments, and other measures in discussions with Vancouver and other municipalities on how to handle revenue losses. As well, the federal government recently announced over $100 billion in income support for individual citizens and businesses.

Also at hand: Vancouver has rainy day reserve funds, including the $4 billion Property Endowment Fund (PEF) we set up in the 1970s. One of the purposes of the PEF (60 per cent of which is tied up in long term low-cost leases for affordable rental housing) is to invest some of its yearly revenues in Vancouver’s strategic priorities. I believe that keeping city services stable during an unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic IS a strategic priority!