Atlantic Development Board (Canada) : In 1954, in an effort to stimulate new economic activity, the Atlantic Provinces Economic Council (APEC) was formed. A non-profit, non-political organization composed primarily of businessmen, APEC measured the Atlantic Provinces' economic problems and provided a forum for debating regional economic issues and bringing these issues to the attention of federal and provincial governments. One of APEC's early recommendations was that the federal government form a capital projects commission to remedy the region's infrastructure short-comings. Other organizations and individuals in the region supported this recommendation. At the federal level, the 1957 report of the Royal Commission on Canada's Economic Prospects recommended federal government assistance to improve the social capital structure of the Atlantic Provinces.
In response to these recommendations, the Atlantic Development Board (ADB) was established on 20 December 1962 (Eliz. II, c.10) as a corporate body consisting of five private citizens, reporting to the Minister of Transport. The Board incorporated three principles of regional economic development: joint and close co-ordination of development programs with the governments of the Atlantic provinces; a concern with the overall basic structure of the regional economy and with the causes of the current problems rather than their symptoms; and federal financial assistance for essential development projects for which satisfactory financial arrangements were not otherwise available.
The Board was created as a special agency, distinct from the regular machinery of government. Its members were appointed for fixed periods from all the Atlantic provinces, and from diverse fields of activity. Board members, including the Chair, were unpaid, although they were reimbursed for travelling expenses. The Board met every two or three months at various locations in the Atlantic region and once annually in Ottawa, to consider all aspects of the program and to recommend on projects which involved expenditure from the Atlantic Development Fund. By 1966, staff were organized under an Executive Director into Program, Planning and Administration Divisions. Brigadier Michael Wardell was the first Chair of the Board, appointed 24 January 1963. He was replaced on 6 August 1963 by Ian M MacKeigan, QC.
In carrying out studies and projects, the Board's staff worked closely with officials from other Departments, particularly the Economic Council of Canada. In some instances, ad hoc committees between departments and the Board were formed to deal with particular problems. When projects were approved, it was the policy of the Board to request the appropriate Department or Agency to supervise the work and arrange administrative details on the Board's behalf. The other federal bodies with which the Board had contact included the Economic Council of Canada, Agricultural Rehabilitation and Development Act (ARDA), Area Development Agency (ADA), the National Energy Board and the departments of Fisheries, Manpower, Public Works and Energy, Mines and Resources.
Each of the Atlantic Provinces designated officers to maintain liaison with the Board. The Board members of any given province, with the Chair of the Board, constituted a provincial sub-committee of the Board. Although there was no formal procedure for bringing projects to the attention of the Board, the Board followed the practice of consulting the provincial government concerned before taking action on specific projects. Moreover, the provinces shared in the cost of many of the Board's projects, and completed works were turned over to the provinces for operation, maintenance and assessment of user charges, where applicable. Provincial governments made their own arrangements with municipalities.
On 22 April 1963 an amendment to the Atlantic Development Board Act established a 00 million Atlantic Development Fund, (12 Eliz. II, c.5), which was to be used to finance regional development projects, particularly infrastructure development. In addition, the membership of the board was increased to eleven and members were limited to serving two consecutive terms. In 1966, a second amendment increased the fund to 50 million. Between 1965 and 1968 Parliament voted to the Board an additional 58.75 million dollars in four special appropriations, including 30 million dollars during the 1965-66 fiscal year to assist the provinces with trunk highway construction and an additional 25 million dollars in June, 1967 for this project.
During its first four years, the Board's activities generally fell under three main groups: projects and studies; economic planning and co-ordination. Because of the lag in infrastructure development throughout the region, this was the major investment focus by the Board. This included, grants to provinces for electric power development, sharing in the cost of building modern trunk highways, constructing industrial water systems, assisting in the development of industrial parks and sites, contributing to the cost of facilities for post-graduate and industrial research, providing other basic services to industry and carrying out a variety of economic studies.
In the 1967-68 fiscal year, the impact of the Board's spending was beginning to be noticed, as roads were constructed, power plants came on-line and research facilities and industrial parks were completed. In that year, leadership of the Board was transferred to the Department of Health and Welfare.
On April 1, 1969, the Government Organization Act, 1969 created the Department of Regional Economic Expansion (DREE). DREE was established to indicate the priority which the Liberal Government under Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau placed on regional development and in order to made the most efficient use of the material and human resources available for regional development. The Atlantic Development Board was thus abolished (SC 1968-69, c28, s105 (Schedule B)) and the Board's administrative responsibilities were transferred to DREE, along with the Area Development Agency (ADA), Rural Development Act (ARDA), and the Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Act (PFRA). Although the ADB as such disappeared, the legislation established the Atlantic Development Council (SC 1968-69, Part IV, s29) as an advisory body to the Minister.
