Harper, Couillard announce extension of gas-tax agreement for 10 years

ROBERVAL, Que. – Prime Minister Stephen Harper has announced an extension of an agreement between the federal and Quebec government to split gas tax revenues to fund municipal infrastructure.

The accord continuation, which was announced today with Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard, will run for 10 years.

Harper and Couillard say municipalities will benefit from $5 billion from the gas tax fund plus an additional $2.5 billion from the provincial government, bringing the total to $7.5 billion.

Harper also announced that the admissibility criteria for the fund will be widened.

Projects related to amateur sports and tourism will now be considered admissible along with traditional infrastructure efforts such as aqueducts, roads and water filtration.