Councillor Karen MacKinnon is keeping her regional spot with the Association of Manitoba Municipalities (AMM).
MacKinnon was reelected as one of two northern directors for AMM during a regional meeting in Flin Flon in June, representing northwest Manitoba. She ran against a councillor from The Pas, winning 15-5 among delegates in attendance to maintain her post.
It is the fifth time MacKinnon has been elected to the regional position. She first held the spot from 2008 to 2011, then again from 2015 to today. The other elected director is Thompson city councillor Kathy Valentino, who will represent northeastern Manitoba with AMM.
Aside from the elections, a number of delegations were passed, including some recommended by members of Flin Flon city council. The issues covered by the recommended policies from city councillors included measures to provide Manitoba municipalities 25 per cent of net revenues of cannabis excise taxes, restore of the development business loans program for northern businesses through the Communities Economic Development Fund (CEDF), index annual Municipal Assistance Grants, review the existing model of distributing income from VLT distribution and provide more of the income to municipalities, create three separate amendments to the provincial Mining Tax Act and increase the percentage of mining tax allocated to the provincial Mining Community Reserve Fund (MCRF), an emergency fund designed to help mining communities afford services in down times.
MacKinnon said the recommendations were successful and the visiting delegation was warm and receptive to Flin Flon during their time in the community. “All the resolutions were passed. It was a good turnout. Speaking for the city, we were the hosts - we gave them a tour on the lunch break and showed them the city. One of the municipalities even bought a truck while they were here. It sure made a local business happy,” MacKinnon said.
“The resolutions that were passed will then go to the AMM annual convention in Brandon in November.”
