Increases in municipal property taxes and user fees in the proposed 2020 budget will go a long way in planning for the Town’s future, says Smithers’ acting mayor.
If approved, this year’s budget would include a 6.5 per cent increase in revenue and just over an 11 per cent increase in expenses.
Significant increases to the Town’s revenue stream includes a net 5.5 per cent increase ($352,000) in municipal property taxes and a 8.8 per cent ($368,000) increase in user fees and service charges from 2019.
Gladys Atrill told The Interior News the increase to property tax contained some larger expenses, such as the addition of an RCMP member at the Smithers detachment, which will cost the Town approximately $140,000 annually.
READ MORE: Proposed 2020 budget for Smithers contains 5.5 per cent property tax increase
She said the final numbers will likely look similar to the preliminary ones, but council will be giving them a once-over before approval.
“There were some discussions during the budget meeting where people had said they might want to come back and revisit something so there is still that opportunity.” she said.
The Finance Committee reports to Smithers Town Council, who have the final say in approval of the budget.
As for the increase in user fees, primarily water and sewer levies, Atrill explained there are two main reasons.
The first is in direct response to an asset management plan presented to the Town last year which highlighted a number of projected costs to be expected in the areas of water, storm and sewage-related infrastructure over the coming decades.
Atrill said the other part of the increase relates to a concerted effort by the Town to be more conscious of how they plan out the life cycle of future buildings or Town-related operations.
‘We’re just taking that approach that we have to be a little bit more prudent in terms of having some money for when we know things have to be replaced,” she said.
While this has happened in the past for the Town with assets sucha as vehicles, Atrill said council is trying to be conscious of the life cycles of new infrastructure as well.
“We’re not there yet but moving to the point, one hopes, where for everything purchased we start planning for its replacement immediately.”
The 2020 budget will be officially approved once council approves this year’s Financial Plan Bylaw. The latest that bylaw can be approved is May 15 of each year.
trevor.hewitt@interior-news.com
Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter