“There is a risk of being seen as petulant whiners,” he warned. “We can’t be seen like that. We have to work with both levels of government.”

Councillors this week endorsed a motion demanding the province continue to provide $12 million in special social services funding.

Hamilton has received about $70 million in special funding over the last five years. The money has ranged from a high of $19.5 million to last year’s $12 million. In addition, Liberal MPPs have pointed out the city has received millions of dollars from the province to clean up the harbour, for skills training, to boost the city’s hospitals, in infrastructure funding and in gas tax revenues.

The province recently announced it was assuming responsibility from municipalities for about $1.5 billion in services, including social services, and court costs.

In return, the province will eliminate the Ontario Municipal Provincial Fund, from which Hamilton has received the bulk of its special funding.

The problem, say councillors, is the uploading of services won’t begin until 2010. In the meantime, they say, Hamilton will see its budget balloon, and the average tax increase for the homeowner in 2009 will leap from the current projection of 9.3 per cent to more than 11 per cent.

Clark said Ancaster-Dundas- Flamborough-Westdale Liberal MPP and cabinet minister Ted McMeekin told councillors and staff repeatedly last year the social service funding was going to stop in 2008.

“This is one-time funding,” he said.

McMeekin, in an interview, reaffirmed that he did tell politicians and staff there would be no more social services funding in 2009.

City staff has indicated they have not been told by provincial officials or the minister that the city would not be eligible for special social services funding in 2009. Councillors have also stated McMeekin did not tell them the funding would stop next year.

Clark said he informed councillors there would be no more money from the province for social services funding. And he is also troubled by the inference by city politicians are that McMeekin isn’t telling the truth.

McMeekin said in an interview, along with Hamilton Mountain Liberal MPP Sophia Aggelonitis, that he will advocate to the province on behalf of Hamilton to make sure the city doesn’t suffer financially. But he reiterated that it is time the city started being responsible with its money and not rely so much on provincial grants to fix its budget.

Now that the province is promising to help all municipalities by paying for their social services costs, Hamilton can’t ask for further financial help, said Clark, citing the City of Windsor as an example.

Windsor councillors have been asking for similar social services assistance from the province, but haven’t received any help, even though the province’s financial minister, Dwight Duncan, represents the area. For Hamilton officials to expect to receive the special funding again while ignoring Windsor is not realistic, said Clark.

A provincial cabinet minister under the former Progressive Conservative government, Clark said Hamilton must take care of its own budget problems first.

“We need to look at every possible savings where we can cut costs and reduce spending,” he said.

As a starting point, Clark is suggesting councillors cut five per cent from their office budgets.

He is also proposing ideas such as relocating provincial ministry offices into city facilities, such as an agricultural office into the Glanbrook Municipal Service Centre. By offering constructive solutions to Hamilton’s budget crisis to the province, the city will show it is serious about fixing its financial picture.

“These (ideas) need to be debated,” he said. “We can’t keep putting off items we can do now.

“This is the year Hamilton can’t continue the status quo.”