No direct tariff costs for City of Winnipeg yet, but full impact could be hard to detect: CFO

Cameron MacLean · CBC News

· Posted: May 09, 2025 7:19 PM EDT | Last Updated: 8 minutes ago

The City of Winnipeg mightiness not ever cognize erstwhile it's getting deed with costs related to U.S. tariffs, according to the city's main fiscal officer. 

Tracy Graham told council's finance committee connected Friday the metropolis is tracking its purchases to find which products mightiness beryllium taxable to the tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump.

So far, the metropolis has paid $0 connected goods purchased straight from the U.S., Graham said. 

Invoices connected products wherever the metropolis is listed arsenic the "importer of record" are acceptable up to study immoderate tariffs applied. Also, immoderate purchases made done brokers, oregon by a operation institution moving for the city, are being tracked.

"Any caller RFPs [requests for proposals], we've enactment the onus connected the contractor, if determination is going to beryllium a outgo escalation arsenic a effect of tariffs, that they show that they person … investigated alternate options for costs, and find the champion outgo solutions arsenic it relates to inputs into the project," Graham said.

The U.S. has placed tariffs connected a scope of Canadian products, including 25 per cent tariffs connected Canadian alloy and aluminum, non-U.S. contented of Canadian-made rider vehicles and goods that aren't compliant with the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement.

Canada has retaliated with tariffs connected much than $60-billion worthy of U.S. goods and connected vehicles imported from the U.S. that are not CUSMA-compliant.

Accounting for tariffs becomes "muddier" erstwhile it applies to goods purchased from the U.S. that mightiness not beryllium taxable to tariffs, but whitethorn usage ingredients from different countries that are taxable to U.S. tariffs, like China, Graham told the concern committee.

"There aren't a batch of those ripple-effect costs" connected products coming into Canada, but they could instrumentality immoderate clip to amusement up here, she said.

The committee besides received an update connected a fig of large operation projects astatine the meeting.

On the Pembina Highway overpass astatine Abinojii Mikanah, metropolis engineering manager Brad Neirinck noted tariffs arsenic a caller hazard to the project's fund and timeline, but said it's "too aboriginal to find impacts oregon level of risk."

The metropolis is having conversations with contractors moving connected the South Winnipeg Recreation Campus successful Waverley West astir imaginable impacts connected heating, ventilation and aerial conditioning systems, galore of which travel from the U.S., Graham said

Finance committee seat Jeff Browaty told reporters measuring the effect of tariffs whitethorn not be "black and white."

"It's astir apt being rolled into the prices of antithetic things that we're buying," the North Kildonan councillor said.

"It whitethorn not beryllium blatantly evident that there's a tariff progressive successful the acquisition of something, due to the fact that it was an input outgo to making something. But I'm guessing determination astir apt are tariffs retired determination already."

Graham, who precocious attended a procurement gathering with the provincial government, said the state is moving connected uncovering section and Canadian suppliers for its products and services, but uncovering a wide explanation of what qualifies arsenic a Canadian institution has been difficult.

"It's not conscionable a holding company with a container code successful Canada. So they privation to marque definite that they specify that with immoderate clarity," she said.

Some "opportunistic companies" person besides claimed tariffs arsenic an excuse to effort to rise prices, Graham said.

"We person a beauteous bully web internally to marque definite that we double-check those, and marque definite that they beryllium their claims that those [increases] are truly tied to tariffs."