Lanark County Council Highlights – June 24, 2026

Press Release – Lanark County 

Here are highlights from the regular Lanark County Council meeting held June 24, 2026.

2025 Auditor’s Report Presented:

Lanark County Council has approved the 2025 financial statements and appointed KPMG LLC to continue as the auditor for 2026.

Lori Huber, Lead Audit Engagement Partner with KPMG LLC, presented the report to council and indicated 2025 was a quiet year and that the county is financially healthy. “Your total assets have grown year over year, and additional investments have been made.”

Huber outlined the operational activities, total assets and liabilities, variances and asset retirement obligations. In terms of reserve funds, Huber said there has been growth over the last five years, but with the volume of activity they have been maintained at a relatively flat level. The county reported a surplus of just over $7 million, which was over the budgeted amount and contributes to reserves for future decisions.

Huber said this was another solid year, and they did not identify any errors. “The quality of the books and records is a good news story for the team. They were ready for our arrival and we were very impressed.”

She added they will work to prepare the county team for changes expected in 2027.

For more information, contact Kevin Wills, Treasurer, at 1-888-9-LANARK, ext. 1323.

Housing and Homelessness Report Received:

Lanark County Council has received the 2025 Housing and Homelessness Report, which provides an overview of programs offered through Lanark County Social Services and how they were used.

Housing Services Manager Kaitlyn Murray said six households received the Homeownership Downpayment, 273 people benefited from Portable Housing Benefits, 28 received assistance through the Ontario Priorities Housing Initiative programs, the Canada-Ontario Community Housing Initiative provided funding for the 63 Halton Street build, along with $2.5 million in municipal dollars, and the Affordable Housing Capital Grant supported 10 units at the Linden Housing Co-Operative.

In 2025 there were 470 applicants on the centralized waitlist for Rent-Geared-to-Income (RGI) housing. There were 191 new applications with 28 considered special priority and 50 units were offered. Murray outlined the launch of the new Lanark Integrated Frontline Team (LIFT), which is a partnership delivering mobile, relationship-based support in community settings, including encampments, to try to reduce barriers to care.

The Housing Assistance Program served 804 households with costs such as last month’s rent, rent and utility arrears, moving expenses, etc. The Homelessness Prevention Program also funded food and gas cards, crisis care beds, after-hours homeless assistance through Victim Services, adult supportive housing, and other initiatives. In 2025, 182 newly identified households were added to the By-Name List for homelessness, and 112 were housed.

Murray said homelessness prevention efforts included funding for a mental health and addictions outreach worker and a housing-based case manager in partnership with Lanark County Mental Health. Partnership with the Bridge House (transitional housing) continues, with expansion to 22 beds. Public education was provided as well, including a series of sessions to educate tenants on their rights as renters. The full 2025 report will be posted in the “Housing” section of the county’s website at www.lanarkcounty.ca.

For more information, contact Kaitlyn Murray, Housing Services Manager, at 1-888-9-LANARK, ext. 2401.

Council Endorses Emergency Room Reform:

Lanark County Council has supported a Western Ontario Wardens’ Caucus motion endorsing Finlay’s Law on Emergency Room (ER) Reform. Finlay’s Law references the loss of 16-year-old Finlay van der Werken, who waited more than eight hours in an ER in Oakville without being seen by a physician and died from pneumonia that developed into sepsis. 

The motion highlights growing pressures on Ontario’s healthcare system resulting in increasing patient volumes in emergency rooms, requiring more complex care and contributing to longer wait times. It cites data for increasing wait times for admission and urgent care, as well as staffing shortages affecting timely care. It points to shortfalls in provincial funding as a barrier to maintaining current health programs, and the backlog of alternate level care patients occupying acute care beds, with 40 per cent awaiting long-term care beds.

“Canadian ER researchers have highlighted that between 8,000 and 15,000 Canadians die prematurely as a result of ER overcrowding.” 

The motion calls for the provincial Ministry of Health to take immediate action to reduce ER wait times with consideration for the importance of enhanced triage protocols and increased funding. It also seeks to introduce Finlay’s Law to ensure no child in Ontario is left without timely emergency medical care in hospitals, which would set limits on wait times for those under 18; provide safe pediatric nurse- and physician-to-patient ratios; increase oversight, investigation and enforcement; provide timely inquiries for every pediatric death in an ER waiting room; and provide funding for better pediatric emergency readiness. It also asks the federal ministry to enforce principles of the Canada Health Act through funding transfers to Ontario by monitoring compliance, including new sepsis care. The motion is to be widely circulated.

For more information, contact Jasmin Ralph, Clerk, at 1-888-9-LANARK, ext. 1502.

Status Quo Recommended for Rescue Services:

Following a Rescue Services Review report by the Loomex Group earlier this year, Lanark County Council has directed staff to proceed with the option to continue operating the program without making any significant changes. Lanark County owns three heavy rescue vehicles used for motor vehicle collisions.

Deputy Clerk Megan Beson explained an initial report detailed upcoming challenges to providing consistency in service, consideration for capital replacement, potential enhanced services, and future provincially mandated training requirements. Loomex provided a third-party review to look at service options and potential enhancements, and an ad hoc committee of councillors and fire chiefs was created to make recommendations to council. 

The Loomex report provided three potential options: status quo, disbanding the program or enhancing it. The ad hoc committee reviewed the options and a wide range of additional data and recommended the status quo. She said the program has existed for about 40 years, provides a valuable service and is relatively inexpensive to operate. This option will still have financial implications for equipment replacement costs and future training costs.

Beson noted disbanding the program would place responsibility for rescue services on local municipalities; while enhancing it would incur additional operating and training costs. Any associated financial costs related to the status quo will be considered as part of the 2027 budget process.

For more information, contact Megan Beson, Deputy Clerk, at 1-888-9-LANARK, ext. 1102.

Form of Agreement Established for Medical Tiered Response Program:

Lanark County Council has approved a by-law authorizing the “form of agreement” for a medical tiered response (MTR) program between the county and participating local municipalities. The agreement provides ambulance dispatch with criteria to request respective local fire departments to be used as an additional resource for certain medical calls. Such agreements are common across Ontario.

Clerk Jasmin Ralph explained all local municipalities that opt to participate in the program must adopt the agreement. The county and local municipalities have participated in MTR programs since 2008 and have been working to ratify an updated agreement for about six years. 

A working group made up of the Lanark County paramedic chief, representatives from local fire departments and two county councillors has been meeting to review the current agreement and statistics coming from the implementation of the new Medical Priority Dispatch System. Key changes with the new agreement include narrowing the types of calls required for response and removing the 20-minute time window; increasing training requirements; and enhancing privacy protection and information sharing requirements. 

Ralph emphasized municipalities can opt in or out of the agreement and that a consistent form of agreement is important to ensure safe implementation at the ambulance dispatch. The program is focussed on medical situations requiring the most immediate response and has stronger provisions for risk management, privacy, insurance and governance compared to the previous model.

“Local municipalities will each need to consider their options related to this type of service within their own communities,” she added.

For more information, contact Jasmin Ralph, Clerk, at 1-888-9-LANARK, ext. 1502.

Homelessness Prevention Program Funds Allocated:

Lanark County Council has approved the 2026-27 Homelessness Prevention Program (HPP) allocations for almost $2.5 million.

Community Support Services Manager Brooke Coutts explained the program is provincially funded and aims to deliver housing and support services to individuals at risk of or experiencing homelessness, with the goal of preventing, addressing and reducing homelessness, including chronic homelessness, through flexible and local responsive services. It supports a range of vulnerable populations.

The province requires an investment plan to outline how funding will be spent in five categories. For 2026-2027, the allocations are as follows:

• Emergency shelter (e.g., motel vouchers) – $200,000
• Supportive housing (residential services homes) – $830,000
• Community outreach and support services (food security, By-Name List for homelessness, The Bridge House) – $801,200
• Housing assistance (short-term/emergency assistance) – $540,000
• Administration (5%) – $124,800

“HPP supports a range of services that address housing instability and homelessness across Lanark County. The recommendation is to continue funding these programs in 2026-27,” Coutts said.

For more information, contact Brooke Coutts, Community Support Services Manager, at 1-888-9-LANARK, ext. 2408.

Upcoming Meetings:

Please note there are no regular meetings in the month of July.

• County Council, Wednesday, August 12, 5 p.m.
• Community Services, August 12 (following County Council)
• Corporate Services, August 12 (following Community Services)
• County Council, Wednesday, August 26, 5 p.m.
• Public Works, August 26 (following County Council)
• Economic Development, August 26 (following Public Works)

Watch for details about public access to meetings on agendas and through online notifications. For more information, contact 1-888-9-LANARK, ext. 1502. Like “LanarkCounty1” on Facebook and follow “@LanarkCounty1” on Instagram.