Roger Melanson lays out $597.1M capital budget

The Gallant government’s first capital budget will spend $597.1 million on infrastructure projects that should create 1,200 jobs, according to Finance Minister Roger Melanson.

Melanson released the capital budget on Wednesday in the legislature, which he said will continue the maintenance on existing provincial assets but also start work on strategic projects.

The finance minister said these high-priority projects will “help us create jobs, realize efficiencies and provide a better quality of life for New Brunswick families.”

“Through this capital budget we are managing smarter by basing our priorities on objective criteria that will generate significant savings over time,” the finance minister said in his speech.

“Through this capital budget, we are making investments that will help build a New Brunswick with more jobs, more opportunity and greater hope.”

Some of the major capital expenditures include:

• Transportation: $409.5 million will be spent on maintenance and repair of existing infrastructure.
• Education: $95.9 million will be spent on K-12 infrastructure. This includes $77.1 million for continuing maintenance, construction and expansion projects. There is another $18.8 million for new projects.
• Health: $60.2 million will be spent on the maintenance and improvement of health-care infrastructure.
• Post-secondary education: $5.6 million will be spent on university and community college infrastructure.
• Energy: $11.8 million will be spent on energy retrofit and renewable energy projects.

Melanson, who is also the minister of transportation, said the capital budget sets aside $482.4 million for regular capital projects and $114.6 million for projects under a new Strategic Infrastructure Initiative.

“This special infrastructure investment initiative was a key commitment in our election platform,” Melanson told the legislature.

“Its purpose is two-fold: first, to provide stimulus that will create jobs in the short-term and, second, to begin building the strategic infrastructure that will help us create even more jobs in the long-term.”

The finance minister announced the Gallant government will spend nearly $600 million over the next four years through the initiative.

The provincial government will use a “calculated and rigorous decision-making framework” to approve projects under this new program.

“Projects will be required to demonstrate their ability to create jobs, leverage funds through outside partners and generate lasting economic activity,” Melanson said.

10-year capital infrastructure plan

The capital budget also sets out a commitment to offer long-term infrastructure investment projections. Melanson said the department is starting to develop a 10-year capital infrastructure fund.

“Our schools, hospitals, roads and public buildings are used by hundreds of thousands of New Brunswickers daily and contribute significantly to our economic well-being and overall quality of life,” he said.

“We have an obligation to ensure that our infrastructure is modern, safe and well-maintained.”

Infrastructure spending was a key part of the Liberal Party's 2014 election strategy.

The Liberal campaign promised a six-year, $900-million infrastructure program, which would create jobs through building roads and bridges. The final capital budget announced by the Alward government was $555 million. 

Although the infrastructure promise was a key part of the Liberal campaign platform, Melanson told the legislature that it wasn’t exactly the most exciting one that the party could have made to voters.

“In the history of professional politics, you would be hard-pressed to find a more boring campaign promise. But it would be equally difficult to find one as important or timely,” he said.

In 2012, Auditor General Kim MacPherson said the Department of Transportation’s decision to reduce road maintenance funding was deferring millions of added costs into the future.

Melanson raised MacPherson’s concerns in his budget speech and said his plan addresses the need to invest more money now to ensure the province does not have to pay more in the future.

“New Brunswickers know and understand this. They recognize that strategically allocating funding on upkeep and repairs today can prevent spending thousands of dollars for major repairs tomorrow,” he said.