Search for savings in budget stirs debate among councillors
Tasking city departments with finding significant savings as part of the annual budget process divided council this week.
With Windsor City Hall already sharpening its pencils to draft the 2023 budget, councillors had no apparent qualms with a proposed process and timeline offered Monday, which would see a draft budget presented to council in November.
But four councillors opposed asking departments to once again identify 10 per cent reductions with the goal being a zero per cent tax increase — a status-quo exercise for the last several years brought forward this time by Coun. Fred Francis.
“We can't be at zero every single year. I understand that. But we have to try to save people as much money as possible,” Francis said.
While Francis acknowledged council may not act on the 10 per cent departmental reductions at budget time — which could involve getting rid of fire trucks and libraries and making other drastic cuts — he said identifying where savings could occur is a “good exercise.”
Coun. Rino Bortolin disagreed and said he doesn't “think it's a fruitful endeavour,” calling it a “sort of unicorn hunt” that council sends administration on to find cuts.
Coun. Jim Morrison was also against the hunt for 10 per cent efficiencies. He said council has been “very fiscally responsible staying below the rate of inflation” with tax increases.
Though he doesn't mind asking departments to try to come in at a zero per cent increase, he opposed “burdening administration” to put “things that are not reasonable” on the chopping block to achieve 10 per cent savings.
With the municipality incurring rising costs, Coun. Fabio Costante said he didn't see the departmental cuts as “practical,” and that it “pigeonholes us in a direction that I think doesn't conform to a ... city that should position itself for growth.”
Coun. Kieran Mckenzie, also opposed, said he thinks it sends the wrong message to the community, a message that “we should tolerate cuts and we should be prioritizing the reduction of service capacities.” He said he would have liked to see staff directed to prioritize services ahead of cuts.
Having been on council since 2003 when city debt was at a record-high $230 million, Coun. Joanne Gignac recounted having to make “major structural changes” to “right the financial ship,” and said it was “one of the most agonizing things that I have ever participated in.” She called the search for efficiencies a “tough slog” but supported Francis's motion.
We can't be at zero every single year. I understand that. But we have to try to save people as much money as possible.
Ultimately, Francis agreed to amend his motion and instead directed staff to find five per cent savings, not 10, at the request of Coun. Gary Kaschak, without whose deciding vote the motion would not have passed.
Also voting in favour of staff identifying five per cent savings and a zero per cent tax increase option were Mayor Drew Dilkens and councillors Jeewen Gill and Ed Sleiman. Coun. Chris Holt was absent from the meeting.
Dilkens said departments identifying savings options is one reason council has been able to hold the line on taxes.
Councillors also discussed bringing back a virtual budget public engagement tool rolled out in 2021 as a pilot project and praised by two delegates interested in seeing the public more involved in the budgetary process.
Francis's motion also instructed staff to continuously review best practices for public engagement and report back to council those findings next term.
The process to craft next year's budget officially began on Monday.