The City of Peterborough’s draft 2020 Budget was released for public review on Monday, December 9, 2019 with City Council scheduled to hold its budget deliberations from January 13 to 16, 2020.

The budget is expected to go to Council for approval on January 27, 2020.

The draft 2020 Budget outlines investments in infrastructure and services to the community, limiting the property tax increase for operating and support for the traditional capital program to 1.75%. When the sanitary and storm sewer charges as well as education taxes are included, the overall property tax increase for a typical single-detached home would be 2.34%.

A 2.34% property tax increase equates to $7.85 a month or $94.19 a year for a home assessed at $260,000 in 2020.

Before putting together the draft 2020 Budget, Council led a series of five Budget Roadshow drop-in meetings between April and June 2019 and the City offered a survey on community priorities that generated 996 responses. Comments from the community on budget priorities, expected service levels, and legislated responsibilities were considered as the City prepared the draft 2020 Budget.

Council will hear from public delegations on the draft 2020 Budget at its Finance Committee meeting on January 13, 2020 at 5:00 pm. The public will also have the opportunity to address Council at the regular Council meeting on January 27, 2020 before Council considers giving final approval to the budget.

At its meeting on June 24, 2019, City Council approved the following directions for the drafting of the 2020 Budget:

• That the Draft 2020 Operating Budget reflect an estimated 1.75% all-inclusive (Municipal, Education, Sanitary Sewer Surcharge) increase for general Operating Budget impacts.
• That the Draft 2020 Operating Budget reflect an additional 0.59% all-inclusive budget provision for support to the capital program comprised of:

1. A budget provision of $620,000 (0.36%) for Stormwater Protection,
2. An increase in the Sewer Surcharge rate to provide the equivalent of $350,000 (0.23%) in Sanitary Sewer revenues, and

• That the revised Tax Ratio Reduction Program continues for the 2020 Draft Budget and reflects reductions:

1. to the Commercial and Industrial Class Tax Ratios but not the Multiresidential Class, and
2. at the reduced rate established through the 2016 Budget process.

• That the increase in the Police Services portion of the draft 2020 Operating Budget reflect no more than the Operating portion of Net Tax Levy increase (estimated to be 2.78%), and any increase in the net Police Services budget beyond the estimated Operating Portion of the Net Tax Levy increase be addressed by Council as part of the detailed 2020 Budget deliberations to occur in November of 2019.
• That Council commit, in principle, to leveraging the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program federal and provincial funding, subject to annual budget approvals, by funding the municipal share of the projects estimated to be approximately $22 million over the next eight years, or an average of $2.75 million per year, to maximize the available grants; and
• Unless new, sustainable funding becomes available from another level of government or outside source, no new services are to be added to our municipal tax base for the 2020 budget.

Budget Roadshow

Ahead of the setting of guidelines for the drafting of the 2020 Budget, City Staff worked with Finance Chair Councillor Dean Pappas, Finance Vice Chair Councillor Gary Baldwin as well as the Mayor and Ward Councillors to undertake a Budget Roadshow.

The Budget Roadshow included a series of sessions, four drop-in style sessions and one more structured setting with organized group discussions, in each of the Wards. The sessions provided an opportunity for residents to talk with Council members and Finance staff about priorities for next year’s budget and to have conversations about the issues in our community. About 300 people attended these sessions.

Through the Budget Roadshow, residents were encouraged to fill out the 2020 Budget survey on priorities and issues. The 2020 Budget survey was open for approximately four weeks, from Monday, April 15 to Friday, May 10. It offered broad, high-level topics and questions as one way for residents to engage in the budget process at this early stage of drafting the budget. There were 996 responses to the survey – both online and through paper copies.

According to survey respondents, the most important issues facing the community, recognizing that not all these issues are within the City’s control, are as follows ranked from most important to least important:

1. Housing, accommodations
2. Infrastructure, transportation
3. Cost of living
4. Social issues
5. Economy, jobs, economic issues
6. Health, public health
7. Environment, environmental issues, sustainability
8. Addiction and overdoses
9. Crime, criminal activity
10. Property taxes
11. Provision of recreation facilities
12. Governance and transparency