Municipal Bonusing of Industry: The Legislative Framework in Ontorio to 1830

Abstract

Nombreuses furent les municipalités qui, en Ontario, ont tenté, entre les années 1870 et les années 1920, d’influer sur la vitesse et la forme de la croissance urbaine en offrant des stimulants aux fabricants. La présente étude résume la législation ontarienne régissant ce type de stimulants. Elle définit les diverses formes d’aide que pouvaient fournir les conseils municipaux aux entreprises industrielles et les contraintes limitant les pouvoirs modifiés de temps à autre des municipalités. Le cadre législatif du système de primes sur lequel porte l’étude est divisé en quatre périodes : 1867-1892; 1892-1900; 1900-1924; après 1924; des extraits des lois sont présentés en annexe. L’auteur évoque certaines incidences du système de primes dont doit tenir compte l’étude de l’histoire urbaine.Many Ontario municipalities between the 1870s and the 1920s tried to influence the pace and form of urban growth by granting inducements to manufacturers. This research note offers a summary of the Ontario legislation relating to such inducements. It defines the forms of assistance municipal councils might grant to industrial enterprises and the restrictions on the powers of municipalities, as these were amended from time to time. The legislative framework of bonusing is considered in four periods: 1867-1892; 1892-1900; 1900-1924; after 1924; and excerpts from the legislation are presented in an appendix. Some implications of bonusing in the study of urban history are suggested

Community, ethos and local initiative in urban economic growth: review of a theme in Canadian urban history

“…A summary of the Ontario legislation on municipal bonusing shows that until 1900 there were different requirements for inducements consisting of a cash gift or loan (strictly a 'bonus'), which would create long-term debt, than for other forms of aid such as exemptions from municipal taxation, grants of factory sites or of free or cheap water, light or power. 70 The first type of aid had to be ratified by a majority of the community's property-owning voters, while the second could be passed by a simple majority of the municipal councillors. After an early period of permissive, empowering legislation until the early 1880s, a series of amendments imposed increasingly stringent constraints on municipal bonusing powers.…”

Boards of Trade and Canadian Urban Development

“…Their industrial policies involved both direct subscriptions by local businessmen in new factory ventures and the use of municipal powers to grant cash bonuses or loans, tax exemptions or other inducements to manufacturers. 38 When the grant of such a bonus required a majority vote by the property-owners, board of trade and local press would energetically "organize the voters." Metropolitan boards of trade did not usually favour municipal bonusing, preferring to lobby higher governments to facilitate their growth strategies or protect their interests.…”