A series of budget meetings this week will set the stage for council to discuss if they will need to make cuts to service levels and whether or not property taxes will increase.
The Town’s budget and finance committee will meet with department managers in Town administration during a series of meetings which started on Tuesday. During the meeting, administration’s top managers will present their budget requests to the committee. The meetings are held in the town council chambers and will continue through to Thursday afternoon. They are open to the public, unless the committee goes in camera for certain items.
Coun. Matt Rockley said he hopes service levels can be maintained without the need for a significant tax increase.
“I’m hoping to see a budget that at least maintains the level of services that the Town provides,” he said. “We need to make sure we’re still providing the same level of service we have in the past.”
If taxes do need to increase, Rockley wants a modest increased.
“We’re still in the bust cycle of the economy,” he said. “Things are still recovering, so now isn’t the time to be hitting people with a large tax increase.”
Earlier this fall, Rockley unsuccessfully sought to have any potential tax increase limited to a rate of inflation plus growth. Council later approved a motion limiting operating spending increases to the rate of growth plus either 2.5 per cent or the inflation rate for the metropolitan Calgary area for this year, which ever is less.
When the motion was passed, some on council said it would likely mean cuts in spending or service levels.
Mayor Bill Robertson said the meetings this week will reveal whether these predictions will come true.
“I’m hoping to see the best value for tax dollars, absolutely the best value, and certainly not more than inflation, the municipal price index,” he said.
The discussions will also include potential changes to property taxes. However, Robertson said the final tax bill won’t be set until the spring when the property tax assessments are complete.
“Until all the assessments are done, we don’t know exactly what the property tax rate will be,” he said.
Coun. Laurie Hodson, budget and committee chairperson, said the meetings are not an opportunity for councillors to micro-manage over individual budget items.
“It’s very difficult for an elected official to have a very serious discussion with a business centre manager over a singe line in a very detailed budget,” he said.
Regardless, Hodson said this year’s budget will be a challenge to put together.
While the Town has worked to keep tax increases low in recent years, he said residents also haven’t shown much interest in reducing municipal service levels and cuts are still possible.
“I haven’t ruled that out, and I don’t think our committee has ruled that out,” he said.
As well, Hodson said the indoor field house is a priority and the Town has a long-standing practice of putting aside money for the future.
He said believes the Town should move towards a three-year budget cycle as is done in Calgary to provide more certainly over the long-term. WHAT DOES THIS MEANZ? HOW DOES IT CHANGE HOW THEY DO THINGS NOW? WHAT DO THEY NEED TO DO TO MAKE A THREE-YEAR PLANZ?
