The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

Propertytaxes going upw ithTow n's 2017 budget by Nathan Howes Oakville Beaver Staff 5 | Thursday, December 15, 2016 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | www.insideHALTON.com Oakville residents are going to pay more in property taxes next year. The 2017 budget was passed unanimously Monday (Dec. 12) at the final Town council meeting of 2016. The increase means owners of an Oakville home assessed at $700,000, for example, will pay an extra $115.36 per year ($2.22 a week) -- or $16.48 per $100,000 of assessment -- on their property tax bill next year, which represents a 1.99 per cent hike on the overall tax bill. However, it's actually a 3.21 per cent increase on the Town's portion of the tax bill, which is then reduced after combination with a smaller hike from Halton Region and no change to education taxes. "Oakville is well-placed to meet the financial and service needs of our community, now and into the future," said Ward 6 Councillor Tom Adams, 2016 Budget Committee chair, in a presentation before the budget was approved. "As an Oakville resident, you can continue to feel confident in the high level of services and programs the Town provides, as well as our fiscal health." While residents pay taxes to the Town, the taxes collected are divided among the municipality (Oakville), regional municipality from the Province for education. "The budget presented today (Dec. 12) focuses on the 40 per cent share of the overall bill. When combined with the Region and education, it gives you the overall increase residents will see on their tax bill," said Adams. "It reflects the costs of providing all municipal services, similar to a single-tier municipality, such as Toronto, Hamilton or Guelph." The $ 3 10-million operating budget will provide various programs and services, including maintenance of roads and community facilities, fire services, transit, parks and trails, recreation and culture, senior services and libraries, among others. Adams noted 58 per cent of the Town's funding in 2017 will come from property taxes, eight per cent lower than when he first joined council. Program upgrades recommended for 2017 include improvements to bylaw enforcement, implementation of changes to the private tree bylaw to strengthen tree protection, an additional $50,000 funding for Visit Oakville, $90,000 to support the Heritage Grant program see Town's on p.8 Councillor Tom Adams (Halton), and whichever school board (Catholic or public), a property owner elects to support. The latest Toronto Consumer Price Index shows an annual increase of 2.3 per cent. Once the increase on the Town's portion of the tax bill is combined with a proposed 1.9 per cent increase in Halton Region taxes and no increase in education rates, the overall tax bill will rise by 1.99 per cent. "As a council, we'll continue to keep finances strong and stable and property tax increases in line with inflation," said Adams. The Ward 6 Councillor noted 40.2 per cent of residents' property tax bill is levied from the Town, 37.1 from the Region and 22.7 per cent INJURED? I Can Help! Y O U D O N 'T H A V E T O P A Y U N LE S S I G E T Y O U M O N E Y My team of experienced lawyers can help you with: · Car accidents · Slip and Falls · Disability Claims (Short-Term Disability, Long-Term Disability, CPP) · Wrongful Dismissal OFFICES IN OAKVILLE AND TORONTO A IR E O N EM A D N E S SS A L E ! U PG R A D E Y O U R FU R N A C E FOR O N LY For a free consultation call: Oakville: 905.842.2022 or Toronto: 416.351.9222 email: sspadafora@slspc.ca FURNACE DIAGNOSTIC SPECIAL HEATING & COOLING FURNACE CLEANING B O O K YO U R S TODAY! 9 LO C A T iO N S TO S E R V E YOU B E T T E R CALL NOW , QUANTITIES ARE LIMITED! www.aireone.com S , Injury and Employment Law SamSpadafora TEXT YDOAKVILLEBEAVER TO 58888 f o r u p c o MING c o u r s e DATE s . ( 9 0 5 ) 8 4 9 -4 9 9 8 1 888 827 2665 SAFETY, ACHIEVED. FREEDOM, GUARANTEED. Register your new driver for a 4-day express course. Young Drivers' exclusive Collisionfree/TM driving maneuvers are their best defence on the road. Oakville locations 345 Lakeshore Rd. East, Suite 312 180 Oak Park Blvd., Suite 107 YD.COM | (9 0 5 )8 4 2 -6 8 4 6