City council finalizes tax and rate increases City to see 6.4 per cent raise in municipal taxes, nine per cent water increase, six per cent sewer increase
After much discussion over the last few months, Moose Jaw city council decided the need for infrastructure repairs and improvements outweighed the need to cut back and alter civic programs and departments when it came to the 2018 budget.
As a result, local taxpayers will see a 6.4 per cent increase in property tax, nine per cent increase in water rates and six per cent increase for sewer rates.
That’s a change from a 15 per cent water increase, six per cent sewer increase and 5.1 per cent property tax increase that saw the budget tabled two weeks earlier in order to receive further review by council and city administration.
“We’re the ones who have to make that decision and it’s not like we’re running along and are super happy about that,” Moose Jaw Mayor Fraser Tolmie said shortly after the final budget had been passed. “We would love to have zeros, but you have to have revenue in order to provide that and costs go up. “I’m a taxpayer, too, and we know. We know what the impact is and for the average person overall that’s an $8 increase on your monthly bill. That’s less than Netflix, and that’s having your water, your garbage taken away and your roads improved. So people want better service and we can’t do it with the old numbers, so we’re trying to find creative ways and innovative ways to make changes so we will get better service and save citizens money.”
As had been the case throughout the budget process – and especially when it came to seeing the rate and tax increases -- Coun. Brian Swanson was opposed to the decision, preferring to see cuts to other programs and in other city departments and services in order to reduce the shortfall. His position had been ‘one per cent tax increase for every one per cent cut from expenditures’.
“All (the new budget number) does is shuffle it around, it’s the same amount of money,” he said. “It makes me think that the newest budget tool for the city of Moose Jaw is a bunch of walnut shells and a dried peas, you just kind of move them around.” Swanson pointed out that between this and last year’s increase, taxes will be going up 12.64 per cent in two years. He also took issue with the commercial tax rate rising 17.64 per cent in the same amount of time.
“I think we’re inflicting undue hardship on a sector of Moose Jaw where many parts of it are struggling,” he said. “I would prefer that we reduce these rate increases by looking internally at our own budget... a huge part of our city and its ability to thrive is a commercial sector that creates jobs, and a 17.64 per cent increase over two years? I believe we’ve failed the commercial sector in this community.” Swanson pointed to this budget as the second put in place for the current council and that a path could be set in a permanent direction if it was to pass. “This budget is status quo plus a whole bunch more, with terrible burdens on our commercial sector and the citizens of Moose Jaw who will see another six per cent on their taxes,” Swanson said. “I believe there’s a better way to go about paying for it.”
Coun. Chris Warren was one who voted for the tabling previous budget but ended up in favour of the new set of numbers. He told council his change of heart came out of the potential reduction of services and the need for important infrastructure work to be done, and soon.
“It seems like the costs continue to go up, but the reality is we neglected to do some important work. When it comes to cast-iron waterlines, a lot of communities were replacing those in the 80s and 90s and we’re just working on it now. It’s work that needs to be done.”
Funding those repairs and finding the cash to do so became such an odorous burden for the city itself in part because of the province changing their funding plans for communities, said Tolmie.
“The provincial government’s goal in 2017 was clear – no deficit,” he said. “The City of Moose Jaw’s mandate is to repair and upgrade our failing infrastructure. The province’s goal and our mandate do not line up. That’s the challenge that we face.”
Tolmie pointed to the initial increase of 9.13 per cent last year and the additional 18 per cent hit the province’s funding reduction created as a sign of how council and city administration have come to terms with the situation in the near past – instead of a 27.13 per cent increase, nearly 21 per cent in cost savings, budget cuts and changes to outdated policies were pushed though, creating the six per cent tax increase in 2017.
“We will continue to let the provincial and federal government know of our mandate and economic potential,” Tolmie said. “But we do have to move forward. If we were ever to switch the water off or anything were to ever happen, the consequences of that would be much more.”
The budget revote request moved that the water rate schedule reflect a nine per cent rate increase, sanitary sewer schedule be amended to reflect six per cent increase and remaining $513,000 shortfall be made up 1.91 municipal tax increase for a total of 6.4 per cent. The vote passed 4-2, with Tolmie, Warren, Coun. Crystal Froese and Coun. Scott McMann in favour; Swanson and Coun. Dawn Luhning opposed.
****
Coun. Don Mitchell had every intention of being present for the budget vote, but was held up by a problem that has hit potential council gallery patrons and even members of the media in the past – the doors to City Hall were locked when he arrived just prior to the meeting.
The issue brought up a quick bit of light-hearted discussion between council and the city administration table, with assurances from administration that the doors would be kept open for future meetings.