Ep. 20: The cow fart tax

Metropolis: A Livable Cities Podcast

On the Feb. 28 episode: City budgets and revenue tools with Terra Gillespie. For some of us – okay, maybe just Matt – city budget debates are events of monumental occasions, on par with the Super Bowl. But they are also very, very frustrating, generally because services are expensive and city councils do not want to pay for them. This week, in an attempt to make sense of all this, Matt and Luke are joined by Terra Gillespie, frequent commentator on city issues and the former creative director of Women in Toronto Politics. She tells us why gender equity must be a critical part of city budgeting. We also nerd-out a bit and talk about our favourite revenue tools, along with the challenges that come with getting politicians to embrace them. Can we use social media to make things like vehicle registration taxes seem cooler? Are taxes that apply to certain behaviours fair and worthwhile. And what about cow farts – we should tax those, right? Finally, Matt offers a thumbs up to Montreal’s plan to install heated sidewalks, while Luke’s thumb is pointed firmly downwards over a proposed Toronto policy to increase the licensing fee for restaurant patios.