WHEREAS Saskatchewan has abundant resources whether they be natural, mineral, oil, gas, coal, rare earth elements, potash, fertilizers, timber, or renewable resources.

WHEREAS the majority, if not all these resources are found, extracted, harvested or drilled for in the rural municipalities (RMs) of the province and/or on crown lands.

WHEREAS the Federal Equalization Formula has been called into question and challenged repeatedly by the current provincial government as funds and wealth transfer from the province to Ottawa. Similarly, these funds and the wealth from these resources, transfer royalties to the province from rural Saskatchewan to the general revenues of the province with little to no accounting of how much of it proportionately comes back to rural Saskatchewan in the way of services, funding, or support mechanisms.

WHEREAS RMs are increasingly faced with significant capital demands and costs on infrastructure upgrades, bridge construction and repairs, technology needs, road upgrades, engineering costs and capacity to deliver services in our RMs as well as community builds and projects within our greater communities. Further, many RMs lack the potential for any royalty revenue, property tax potential or wealth generation from the resource sector directly.

BE IT RESOLVED that SARM lobby the provincial government to pass legislation returning 10% of any resource royalty dollars (or equivalent value & credit like green credits generated to SaskPower) generated or extracted from provincial royalties within an RM directly back to the RM annually from where the royalty revenues were generated from said resource royalties including all mines and minerals, as well as natural and renewable resources.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that SARM lobby the provincial government to include in that legislation an additional 10% of those resource royalty dollars (or equivalent value & credit like green credits generated to SaskPower) generated or extracted from provincial royalties within an RM go directly into a Rural Municipal Royalty Resource Fund that is in then split proportionately amongst all the RMs of the province of Saskatchewan on an annual basis.