Owen Sound City Hall. (Photo by Claire McCormack. July 2024)
Owen Sound council wants to find out if the city can stop buying American.
Council passed a motion during Monday’s meeting to direct staff to prepare a report on “the feasibility of prohibiting the corporation of the City of Owen Sound from procuring or purchasing American-made products and services.”
Coun. Brock Hamley introduced the motion, which appears in response to ongoing trade tensions between Canada and the United States over a 25 per cent tariff the American government is imposing at the border on Canadian imports that don’t satisfy U.S.-Mexico-Canada agreement rules of origin. Canada has responded with its own counter-tariffs.
“I’ve asked for in this motion, what it would look like for the city to ban (its purchase of) American-made products and services. I think it’s very clear, ” Hamley says. “There is going to be a lot of conversation that will come out of this, I’m sure.”
It’s not immediately clear if outright banning the procurement of “American-made products and services” is a step the City of Owen Sound could take without facing legal liability. The report from staff would presumably help answer legal questions about how municipal procurement processes interact with provincial and federal regulations, and international trade agreements.
Coun. Jon Farmer also wondered how “American goods” could be defined.
“Especially if there are things designed in the (U.S.) and built other places, and shipped from those other places here. Are we talking about design? Are we talking about manufacture,” Farmer asks. “Are we talking about ownership … if a parent company of a local supplier is an American company? If it’s an American company, but they make the thing in Owen Sound.”
“I think there is variability there I would appreciate clarity on.”
Hamley responds: “Those are probably some of the things the report would outline.”
The motion passed by council also asks staff to ensure the report includes recommendations on how the city can prioritize and strengthen its procurement locally, and Canadian-made goods and services.
City Manager Tim Simmonds says the requested report will come back to council in September or October, around the time when an update to Owen Sound’s procurement policy is set to be completed.
“There are so many moving parts to this that the federal and provincial governments need to work through that will help inform our work,” Simmonds says in an email. “We will be giving council updates as this moves forward.”
