Questions and responses 40th Parliament, 2nd session January 26, 2009, to December 30, 2009

With regards to the $33 billion Building Canada plan announced in Budget 2007: (a) what are the total federal funds committed for expenditure, as well as the amount effectively spent, to Canadian municipalities, through the Building Canada plan, per year, since its inception; (b) who are the recipients of these funds, what is the breakdown for every province and territory, as well as the criteria used for allocating these funds; and (c) what are the changes to the allocation criteria in Budget 2009?

With respect to the renovation of the landing strip at the Saint-Hubert Airport: (a) has a department received a request for financing from “Développement l'aéroport Saint-Hubert de Longueuil”, the City of Longueuil, “Aérocentre YHU de Longueuil” or any other organization; (b) under which program is this request being processed; (c) has this request been approved; (d) what amount does the department intend to contribute to this project; and (e) when does the department intend to announce its contribution?

With regards to the infrastructure programs within Budget 2009 and the Building Canada plan: (a) do the Treasury Board guidelines differ in any way between the new infrastructure programs within the Economic Action plan and the Building Canada programs from Budget 2007; and (b) what analysis has been undertaken to evaluate the effects of infrastructure programs on increased costs of construction?

With regards to the infrastructure programs within Budget 2009 and the Building Canada plan: (a) what are the due diligence guidelines and processes used to select approved projects for (i) Building Canada Fund Major infrastructure, (ii) Building Canada Fund Communities Component, (iii) Public-Private Partnerships Fund, (iv) Gateways and Border Crossings Fund, (v) Provincial-Territorial Base Funding, (vi) Infrastructure Stimulus Fund, (vii) Green Infrastructure Fund, (viii) Universities and Colleges Knowledge Infrastructure program; (b) what auditing requirements are being placed on approved projects for (i) Building Canada Fund Major infrastructure, (ii) Building Canada Fund Communities Component, (iii) Public-Private Partnerships Fund, (iv) Gateways and Border Crossings Fund, (v) Provincial-Territorial Base Funding, (vi) Infrastructure Stimulus Fund, (vii) Green Infrastructure Fund, (viii) Universities and Colleges Knowledge Infrastructure program; (c) was any targeting done for areas with respect to unemployment level or need for (i) Building Canada Fund Major infrastructure, (ii) Building Canada Fund Communities Component, (iii) Public-Private Partnerships Fund, (iv) Gateways and Border Crossings Fund, (v) Provincial-Territorial Base Funding, (vi) Infrastructure Stimulus Fund, (vii) Green Infrastructure Fund, (viii) Universities and Colleges Knowledge Infrastructure program; and (d) which projects were exempted due to changes in environmental regulations and/or changes to the Navigable waters protection act for (i) Building Canada Fund Major infrastructure, (ii) Building Canada Fund Communities Component, (iii) Public-Private Partnerships Fund, (iv) Gateways and Border Crossings Fund, (v) Provincial-Territorial Base Funding, (vi) Infrastructure Stimulus Fund, (vii) Green Infrastructure Fund, (viii) Universities and Colleges Knowledge Infrastructure program?