Ontario mayors call for COVID relief funding to prevent tax increases

Mayors from Ontario's largest cities say the federal and provincial governments must provide emergency funding to municipalities to cover costs related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Large Urban Mayors' Caucus of Ontario says upper levels of government must act now to prevent property tax increases, service cuts, and user fee hikes.

The group has been calling for several months for a least $10 billion in relief funding for municipalities across the country.

Meanwhile, Ontario is reporting 154 new cases of COVID-19, along with 160 newly resolved cases and no new deaths.

The total number of cases now stands at 35,948, which includes 31,426 marked as resolved and 2,689 deaths.

The province completed roughly 17,303 tests for the novel coronavirus over the previous 24 hours.