The COVID-19 crisis and its impact on the revenues and expenses of all governments will make the fiscal capacity of Canada’s municipalities a pressing topic for years to come. All the more reason for municipalities to present budgets and other financial information that let Canadians...

Spending control and greater reliance on their own revenues are more promising responses to provincial budget pressures than higher federal transfers, according to a new report released today by the C.D. Howe Institute. In “Adaptability, Accountability and Sustainability: Intergovernmental...

Fiscal pressures and sovereign debt concerns around the world are intensifying scrutiny of government finances. Even in Canada, where these pressures and concerns are less acute, federal and provincial fiscal controls could be better. Some Canadian governments still present budgets to their...

A lively debate is underway about replacing Canada's 2 percent inflation target with a target for lower inflation or a target for the price level itself when Canada's inflation-control arrangement expires at the end of 2011. Either change could reduce uncertainty about changes in the value of...