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in si de ha lto n. co m O ak vi lle B ea ve r | T hu rs da y, Ja nu ar y 6, 20 22 | 6 ABOUT US This newspaper, published every Thursday, is a division of the Metroland Media Group Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Torstar Corporation. The Metroland family of newspapers is comprised of more than 70 community publications across Ontario. This newspaper is a member of the National NewsMedia Council. Complainants are urged to bring their concerns to the attention of the newspaper and, if not satisfied, write The National NewsMedia Council, Suite 200, 890 Yonge St., Toronto, ON M4W 2H2. Phone: 416-340-1981 Web: www.mediacouncil.ca insidehalton@metroland.com facebook.com/OakvilleBeav @OakvilleBeaver WHO WE ARE VP, Regional Publisher Kelly Montague Regional General Manager Jason Pehora Director of Content Lee Ann Waterman Regional Managing Editor Catherine O'Hara Managing Editor Karen Miceli Director of Distribution Charlene Hall Circulation Manager Kim Mossman Directors of Advertising Cindi Campbell and Graeme MacIntosh CONTACT US Oakville Beaver 901 Guelph Line Burlington, ON L7R 3N8 Phone: 905-845-3824 Classifieds: 1-800-263-6480 Advertising: 289-293-0620 Delivery For all delivery inquiries, please e-mail kmossman@metroland.com or call 905-631-6095. Letters to the editor Send letters to insidehalton@metroland.com. All letters must be fewer than 320 words and include your name and telephone number for verification purposes. We reserve the right to edit, condense or reject letters. Published letters will appear in print and/or online at insidehalton.com OPINION TO LEARN HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR OWN CONTENT VISIT INSIDEHALTON.COM On Dec. 15, Halton Re- gional Council approved the 2022 Budget and Busi- ness Plan. It outlines our upcom- ing investments in pro- grams and services that our community relies on, as well as our ongoing re- sponse to COVID-19. The 2022 Budget keeps property taxes low while preserving the high quali- ty of life in Halton. Its com- bined property tax in- crease for regional and po- lice services is 2.2 per cent, and its rate increase for water and wastewater ser- vices is 2.8 per cent. Some key investments include: • COVID-19 Response: $13.9 million for additional costs in Public Health, Para- medic Services, Long-Term Care, Children's Services and Housing, as well as fa- cility and technology-relat- ed costs. The majority of this investment is funded by the Federal and Provincial Safe Restart Agreement and COVID-19 Recovery Fund- ing for Municipalities, and additional Provincial fund- ing, resulting in a net cost to taxpayers of $711,000. • Public Health and Long- Term Care: $2.0 million to provide needed capacity in Public Health and Long- Term Care, partially funded by anticipated Provincial funding resulting in a net cost to taxpayers of $751,000. • Halton's Digital Strate- gy: $1.3 million to enhance digital services by trans- forming business process- es and services to ensure complete, high-quality on- line service delivery • Strategic Investments: $2.7 million to maintain service levels and support the objectives, outcomes and actions identified in the Region's 2019--2022 Strategic Business Plan; • Housing Services: $2.1 million increased invest- ment in the Halton Rental Assistance Program to support an increased num- ber of rent supplement units. This investment in- cludes one-time funding re- sulting in a net cost to tax- payers of $573,000 in 2022. • Employment and So- cial Services: $300,000 to in- crease food security for On- tario Works recipients and their families. • Halton Region Com- munity Investment Fund (HRCIF): $250,000 to meet new and emerging commu- nity needs and to continue with recovery from the im- pacts of the COVID-19 pan- demic. • State-of-Good-Repair Program: $6.4 million in- crease in transfers to sup- port the water and waste- water state-of-good-repair capital program. By making strategic in- vestments in our commu- nity, we help keep Halton a great place to live, work, raise a family and retire. Gary Carr is regional chair of Halton Region. He can be reached at gary.carr@halton.ca. HALTON'S BUDGET AIMS TO KEEP QUALITY OF LIFE HIGH, TAXES LOW BUDGET INCLUDES VARIETY OF PROJECTS AND PRIORITIES FOR YEAR AHEAD, WRITES GARY CARR Financial success starts with your ability to earn an income. Your employment is not just a job, it is your current livelihood and your future financial security. It makes perfect sense to periodically evaluate your working life. Consider making this your new year's resolution. The idea for this column originated from hearing how hard it is for restau- rants to hire staff. The pandemic shut down that sector and staff were laid off. This provided some with the opportunity to re- think their careers. Some have returned to school to upgrade their skills. Others will use their multi-tasking ability, plus their strong personality, to apply those skills to a dif- ferent job. My recommendation is to invest some time and ef- fort into rethinking your career to see if doing some- thing different may en- hance your life. Break down all the plus- es and minuses of your cur- rent employment. Then consider your ide- al job in terms of what you are good at, what makes you happy, location of em- ployment and flexibility, including the ability to work remotely and your re- muneration target. I recommend capitaliz- ing on our changing world to see if you can make a ca- reer upgrade. Of all the hours you are awake, your job, including commuting, is likely the single task that takes up the most time. Do you need to make a change? Peter Watson, of Watson Investments MBA, CFP®, R.F.P., CIM®, FCSI offers a weekly financial plan- ning column, Dollars & Sense. He can be reached through www.watsonin- vestments.com. TIME FOR A CAREER CHANGE? RETHINK YOUR CURRENT OCCUPATION TO SEE IF YOU SHOULD MAKE A CHANGE, WRITES PETER WATSON PETER WATSON Column GARY CARR Column