Grey County council is asking staff to whittle down an estimated $2.45 million proposed tax levy increase to $1 million as draft budget talks are set to get underway.
An overview from staff presented Thursday (Jan 12) outlined estimated revenue, expenses and levy funding requirements.
Staff told council, after considering assessment growth that has been estimated at just under $1.6 million, the proposed 2023 net levy increase is $2.45 million or 3.66 per cent. A budget summery report by staff says that would work out to $39 a year for the average single detached home valued at $285,000.
The total proposed operating and capital expenditures for 2023 is $226.1 million, an increase of $39.5 million (21per cent) over 2022.
During discussion, Councillor Scott Greig said he wasn’t pleased with the amount of expenditure increase, and said the county needs to ‘dig deeper’ to find savings, saying, “Right now with inflation impacting everyone including us, for many people they just do not have the gross dollars going the same distance as before and when you’re paying your municipal taxes or county taxes, it’s after tax dollars that they’re using to pay for that, so it’s more impactful and I think today if anything, I would support something that is a lower start than 3.66.”
Some portions of the tax supported budget are to be put into reserves for future use, including 1 per cent ($635,100) for affordable housing initiatives and 0.75 per cent ($490,200) for healthcare initiatives.
Staff say in their report, “Inflation continues to impact operational costs and the ability to award capital projects within long planned capital budgets. Significant increases in the Non-Residential Construction Price Index (NRBCPI) continue. The twelve month change for the period ending September 30, 2022, was 15.6 per cent ; in comparison, the 2021 increase was 11.6. per cent.”
In their report, staff say, “significant work has been done at the staff level to review the draft budgets and adjust the bottom line to come to an overall proposed levy increase of 3.66 per cent.”
Council’s 2023 budget meeting has been scheduled for January 27, 2023.
The final budget will come to a County Council meeting in February for formal adoption.
