City council made the 2024 budget official on Monday evening.
The financial plan for the next year will see $138.4 million spent with the property tax increase set at five per cent. A total of $55 million of that spending will go toward capital projects. Revenues from taxes, government transfers, user fees and investments has been pegged at $93.37 million.
The final expenditures were reduced from a forecast $143.3 million, while revenues stayed roughly the same.
The original forecast property tax rate was set to be 16.91 per cent, but that was reduced to 7.22 per cent when $3.5 million was transferred from the general fund. There was a further whittling down from there to reach five per cent.
Kavi Pandoo, the city’s director of corporate services, said $75,000 was removed from the city’s economic development strategy (which has been deferred to 2025), along with $100,000 subtracted for a consultant to review the Street Outreach Program.
A $50,000 contribution for the Capital Area Committee was also scrapped and the Heritage Committee’s budget saw a $10,000 reduction. A further $25,000 was taken out by deferring consultant’s fees related to traditional structures in the city.
A nearly $40,000 bump in ambulance fees is projected. Those fees have increased to $500 for NWT residents (up from $402.50) and $575 for non-NWT residents (up from $460).
But Coun. Steve Payne moved to decrease the tax hike even further, which could be done by reducing the amount of tax revenue directed to the capital fund. That motion, which passed unanimously, saw $513,000 transferred.
“There’s an expectation from city residents for us to do everything we can to keep this tax rate under control,” said Payne in explaining his rationale for the motion. “I think five per cent is not a terrible tax rate to have for this year, considering what so many municipalities around Canada are proposing right now. Five per cent is not ideal — it’s a lot better than 7.22 and slightly better than 6.42 — but five per cent is a good whole number.”
Mayor Rebecca Alty said the move was good to help balance things in the long-term and short-term.
“The fact that we will be reducing taxes actually from 16 per cent down to five per cent is pretty substantial,” she said. “At the same time, through some heavy lifting, we’ve increased the capital fund closing balance to a good, healthy position of $16.6 million. Being able to have a bit more room in the capital fund for the future is that balance that residents are going to need.”
Some other items that were cut from the budget this year include $400,000 that was earmarked for the Niven Lake Ravine Trail sludge project; $250,000 for the Niven Lake Trail paving project and $1 million for the water submarine line replacement project.
A total of $1.5 million worth of what’s known as ‘carry forward’ projects was also released to be put into the capital fund to help build the balance.