Central Council Approves 6% levy Increase

Craig Bakay | Feb 28, 2024

Tax impact limited to 3.5% for most residents.

Central Frontenac Council began its third session for the 2024 budget looking at a draft budget levy increase of 7.5 percent, totalling $716,272 more dollars than in 2023.

By the time council left Oso Hall in Sharbot Lake on Monday (Feb. 26), they’d managed to whittle things down to 6%, an increase of $576,000 in the total levy to ratepayers for Central Frontenac expenses.

The impact of that levy increase on ratepayers will be mitigated by other factors, however.

Treasurer Michael Mcgovern said that the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation has indicated that Central Frontenac enjoyed a growth of 1.9% in property assessment, due to new construction in recent years coming onto the tax rolls for 2024. That new assessment diminishes the impact of the levy increase on existing ratepayers whose property assessment did not increase last year.

As well, the tax bill that Central Frontenac ratepayers receive includes Frontenac County taxation, which was only up 3% this year, and education taxe,s which did not go up at all.

All in all, most ratepayers are looking at a 3.5% increase in the tax bill they will receive in 2024 as compared to 2023.

At a three-hour meeting on Monday, council began another line-by-line attempt at finding cuts in order to trim the budget from the starting point of a 7.5% levy increase without dipping into reserve funds.

“I understand budgeting what-ifs, but every line item . . .,” said Coun. Duncan McGregor.

Frances Smith was dead set against any plan to use reserves to make up for budgetary shortfalls.

Smith pointed out that if the Township ends up with a deficit at the end of the year, reserves must be used to make up said deficit (via legislation), whereas if there is a surplus, there is no such requirement. And, she said, if there is some sort of emergency, like a flood that washes out a major road, it can drain reserves quickly.

She wasn’t alone in her opposition to using reserves to ease the burden of a high tax levy.

“I don’t agree with taking from reserves to pad a budget,” said Coun. Nicki Gowdy.

“Looking at our budget, we’re putting away some contingency for emergencies,” said Coun. Susan Irwin. “But you can’t suck and blow at the same time.

“We can’t complain that we’re draining our reserves and not having it so we have to cover our operating expenses.

“We need to build up our reserves (and) it protects our reserves if we have a buffer to deal with the uncertainty.”

As it stands, Treasurer McGovern projects that township reserves will drop to $2million by the end of 2024. They currently stand at about $3million

Fire Chief Chris McDonough came back to Council with $38,000 cut out of his budget after finding “some repetitions, cutting conventions and some vehicle repairs.”

Smith argued effectively to retain $21,000 in the budget for a Household Hazardous Waste Day but the matter was referred back to the waste committee to consider a more permanent solution (ie, a household hazardous waste location in Central Frontenac. Currently, residents must take hazardous waste to South Frontenac).

One thing McDonough did not want to cut was the budget for forest fire assistance.

“We met with the MNR and they’re pretty concerned about what this summer’s going to look like given the lack of snowpack this winter,” he said.

Council also considered looking at burning brush at the waste sites rather than paying for chipping, grinding and shredding which would save $11,000 to $14,000.

And when the line-by-line exercise resumed, somebody found $10,000 earmarked for Olden Park Road but it was scrapped when nobody could figure out what it was for (the consensus was that it was likely former Public Works Manager Tyson Myers’ plan to replace the old ball diamond there with a household hazardous waste site.)

Smith also suggested looking at hiring a bylaw enforcement officer rather than a septic reinspection officer (or combine the two positions) as it could become a significant revenue source.

“We pass lots of bylaws,” she said. “And every time, I say ‘don’t pass this bylaw unless we’re going to enforce it.’”

After all the trimming and fussing, they’d brought the levy down to 6.7 per cent when McGovern said it would take another $70,000 in cuts to get it down to 6 per cent.

CAO/Clerk Cathy MacMunn said she was confident she and staff could look at the budget again and come up with that.

So, Council approved in principle a levy increase of 6 per cent, with the final figures to come back to the second meeting in March.