(File Photo/northeastNOW Staff)

By Mat Barrett

Melfort Budget

Melfort Council approves 2021 Operating Budgets with 1.8 per cent average tax increase

Apr 13, 2021 | 9:46 AM

The City of Melfort has officially passed their 2021 operating budgets.

At the Regular Council Meeting on Monday, April 12, council approved an average tax increase of 1.8 per cent for property owners in the city.

The preliminary budget saw a total deficit that would’ve worked out to about a 4.75 per cent average tax increase. After a few months of deliberation, council has decided how to fund that deficit with $150,000 coming from the total 2020 surplus of $200,000. Another $73,525 will come from the mill rate stabilization fund, and the remaining will come from that 1.8 per cent average tax increase.

Mayor Glenn George said that while they did have to take from the mill rate stabilization fund, he’s happy with the result of the budget, all things considered.

“We have a rainy day fund, we used it,” George said. “Tried to keep the taxes absolutely as low as we possibly could, and this is the best that we could do.”

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The mill rate stabilization fund does need to be paid back over time through the next years surplus.

Normally, the surplus from the prior year would be divided into the special capital fund and the facility maintenance reserve. The maintenance reserve is still expected to get the remaining $50,000, and there are other recommendations that council is looking at to see if they are able to help limit the damage in those funds for this year.

Councillor Trent Mitchell, who is also the chair of the Legislative and Finance Committee, said this year’s budget was tough.

“The next few years, while we play catch up from this year, is going to be challenging,” Mitchell said. “And hopefully we’ll get out of this COVID-19 crisis and get our economy going back.”

How the tax increase will affect each property owner will vary based on their recent property assessment, and, with that, the treasurer is now going through all the assessments to determine each properties taxes for the year. Tax notices are expected to be mailed out sometime in early May.

Over the last few months, council had been looking at a number of different percentages for an average tax increase, from 1.72 all the way up to 2.72 per cent, but council decided to go with the 1.8 per cent average tax increase this year.

The 2020 average tax increase in Melfort was 2.07 per cent.

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mat.barrett@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @matbarrett6