Shaping Our Future - ONESTEP

13FCM Policy PrioritiesIssue BriefingsMunicipal-AboriginalRelationsThe urbanization of the Aboriginal populationcontinues to increase, with morethan half of all Aboriginal people livingoff-reserve or in jurisdictions wherereserves do not exist. Nevertheless, barriersto employment and to programs andservices, such as housing, education, andchildcare, often impede the success ofAboriginal people living in urban centres.• Strengthened policy and research toaddress issues associated with theincreasing urbanization of Aboriginalpeople.ContactFor more information on this issue,please contact John Burrett, SeniorManager, Social Policy, at (613) 241-5221ext. 244, or at jburrett@fcm.ca. For moreinformationon FCM please visit our website at:www.fcm.ca.At the same time, the creation ofautonomous territories created byland-claim settlements and additions toreserve have implications for municipalgovernments. Service standards, developmentpriorities and regulatory objectivesmay be incongruent, the municipal taxbase may be compromised, and thesupply of specific services may affectmunicipal administration and finances.Improved collaboration among all ordersof government is required on all of theseissues.FCM urges intergovernmental cooperationto ensure:• An institutionalized agreement andclear process for the federal, provincialand territorial governments andAboriginal organizations to work withmunicipal governments to meet theneeds of urban Aboriginal people;• Consideration of municipal interests inthe development and implementationof initiatives implicating municipaloperations, such as the federal UrbanAboriginal Strategy;• Respect for the jurisdiction and territorialintegrity of municipal governments,and the applicability of territorial,provincial, municipal, and First Nationlaws, with respect to the municipal taxbase when land claims are negotiated;and