South Frontenac Council - Dec. 4

Jeff Green | Dec 06, 2012

Cut in transfer nudges up SF tax hike

For the year 2012, South Frontenac Township received $1.86 million from the Province of Ontario under the Ontario Municipal Partnership Fund (OMPF) to help with municipal social service and other costs for programs that at one time were fully funded by the province.

The OMPF program is changing in 2013 and for at least the next four years. The total funding will be decreased on a provincial level by $98 million, and those municipalities with the greatest capacity to handle a decrease, based on a number of factors, will be the ones that face the largest cut.

For South Frontenac that amounts to $206,000 less in OMPF funding in 2013. The total to be transferred will be $1.692 million.

Since the announcement of 2013 OMPF allocation was only made on November 15, just as the South Frontenac budgeting process was at the final stages, Treasurer Louise Fragnoti presented Council with some new budget numbers at their meeting in Sydenham on Tuesday night, Dec. 4.

The last time Council looked at the 2013 budget, they gave staff a directive to come back with two scenarios, one with a 2.98% increase in taxes for the average residential property, and one with a 3.28% increase.

Incorporating the $206,000 shortfall into her latest report, Fragnoti proposed three scenarios for council’s consideration.

In order to reach the 2.98% target, Council will need to cut about $500,000 from spending plans, with cuts to winter road control as well as maintenance to hardtop and gravel roads making up about half of the shortfall.

As well, Fragnoti proposed making a change in the way ratepayers are charged for the township's waste management system.

Until now, a flat $100 user fee has been charged to properties with residences on them. Staff proposed integrating waste into the regular budget, so that the costs will be shared by all properties, including vacant land, and properties with higher assessments will also pay more for garbage collection than those with lower assessments, just as they do for everything else the township does. This change would bring in more money and help cover for the OMPF cut.

Council was left with three scenarios to consider. Under option A, they could keep the waste management fee as a separate item and increase it to $110, and make a number of cuts to bring the budget to a 3.84% increase.

Under option B, they could integrate the waste management fee into the budget, make the same cuts as in option A, not make the road maintenance cuts, and come to a 3.84% increase. Under option C, they could integrate the waste fee and make the road maintenance cuts and cut the increase to the 2.98% target.

With council feeling uneasy about changing the way it collects fees for garbage pick-up and two memebers absent from the meeting, debate on the budget proposals was deferred to next week’s committeee of the whole meeting (December 11 - 7:00 pm)

OMPF cuts spare other townships In our region

South Frontenac would appear to be the only one losing out under Ontario Municipal Partnership Fund (OMPF) reform. North Frontenac will also see a marginal increase to $1.054 million. Central Frontenac will also see a marginal increase to $1.47 million;  Tay Valley Township will see a marginal increase to $546,700, and Lanark Highlands will see a marginal increase to $1.32 million.