8- The Oakville Beaver Weekend, Saturday April 21, 2007 www.oakvillebeaver.com OAKVILLE - Celebrating 150 years! 2007 Operating and Capital Budget Message from the Budget Chair: This year's budget balances what we need to spend with what we can realistically afford to spend. Town staff and Council pulled together and worked out numerous solutions to protect core services and keep the property tax increase as low as possible. Thank you to all residents and stakeholders who participated in the 2007 budget process. Your input and feedback was very helpful to the committee. Councillor Keith Bird Where Your Tax Dollar goes FACILITIES MANAGEMENT HUMAN RESOURCES COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT GOVERNANCE FINANCE CORPORATE SERVICES INFORMATION SYSTEMS & S. OAKVILLE LIBRARY RECREATION OAKVILLE TRANSIT PARKS AND OPEN SPACE ROAD NETWORK FIRE $ PER $100 TAX PAID $2 $2 $2 $3 $4 $5 $5 $8 $9 $10 $11 $18 $21 Creating Canada's Most Livable Town In March 2007, Council approved a $166.5 million gross operating budget and a $53.5 million gross capital budget for a total of $220 million in 2007. This represents a 3.3 percent increase in the Town's portion of the tax bill. The budget process began in June 2006 when the previous Council established 2007 budget guidelines of 2.5 to 7.0 percent. Staff undertook extensive budget reviews to identify efficiencies and proposed a preliminary budget increase of 4.9 percent to the Budget Committee in February 2007. This increase included recommendations for new staff to maintain and enhance current levels of service across our growing community. Program enhancements were proposed for woodlot management, and additional funding was identified for the preparation of the Official Plan, the new Zoning By-law and for transportation planning. The Town's Budget Committee was able to approve the enhanced program and service requests proposed by staff and still reduce the original 4.9 percent increase to 3.3 percent by implementing the following revenue adjustments: · Increase the supplementary tax revenue budget by $800,000 · Apply the Oakville Hydro dividend of $1.4 million to the operating budget In addition, the Committee recommended the Town implement a number of new initiatives including improving transit service by enhancing care-A-van service and expanding existing routes, implementing a graffiti reduction program, enhancing coordination of the Oakville Youth Centre, improving library services such extended hours at Iroquois Ridge and Glen Abbey branches as well as a establishing a library presence in the Clearview area, and applying a small operating grant increase for the Oakville Arts Council. Moving forward, Council is currently developing its strategic plan which will identify its priorities for its term of Council, and the Town is working on a 10 year financial forecast to help plan for the future needs of our residents and to address the challenges of both growth and aging Town infrastructure. Our vision is to deliver the programs and services that will make Oakville the most livable town in Canada. Mayor Rob Burton What It Means to You - Overall 2.1% Tax Increase When the Town's 3.3 percent increase to the residential tax rate is combined with the Region and education portion of the tax bill, the average total residential property tax will increase by 2.1 percent in 2007 or $20.78 per $100,000 of assessment. Residential - Each $100,000 Assessment $250,000 Home $350,000 Home $500,000 Home Per Tax Levy By-Law $20.78 $51.94 $72.71 $103.88 2007 Residential Tax Rate Increase 8.0% 7.0% 6.0% 5.0% 4.0% 3.0% 2.0% 1.0% 0.0% 4.7% 3.9% 3.3% 2.5% 4.0% 7.2% 6.6% 5.9% 4.8% 3.8% Brampton Markham* Oakville Richmond Hill Mississauga Halton Region Peel Region Burlington * = Proposed Celebrate Oakville's 150th Anniversary - for information visit 150.oakville.ca York Region Toronto*