Every year, city hall breaks down proposed budget expenditures into two categories: core budget items (which are considered as core to the current operations of the city and are usually considered in one large block) and supplementary budget items (new proposed expenditures which sometimes add services to the city budget and which are considered by council one by one).
The core budget right now adds about 1.87% of taxes to an average city home. Council, in my experience, never approves all the supplementary budget items but, if we did, I think we would be looking at something like a 5% tax increase. My comfort level right now would be 2% or under. But, I'm open to moving either direction in my thinking.
There are many incredibly worthy items on the supplementary budget. It's going to be a tough process to decide what to approve / not approve. Council can also look to decrease spending on some of the core budget items or dip into the general reserve fund. There also some numbers that are yet to totally solidify, such as the operating surplus for the city in 2013.
I've uploaded the report with all the supplemental budget items for 2014. Please feel free to download and read - 2014_kamloops_supplemental_budget_items (14.4 megabyte PDF file).
I feel before Council considers spending any funds on any supplemental item, they should ensure an Infrastructure Contingency Fund is started and funded each year based on at least a 1% to 2% of the overall city budget being spent. Ageing and decaying infrastructure is one of the biggest challenge facing all municipalities across Canada. We have to be prepared for the increasing high costs of repairs and 'save to reduce' the cost of borrowing for such repairs. In a normal household budget, it is recommended by any financial planner to ensure one maintains a 'emergency fund'. So let's apply this principal in the city. I will admit that this comment is based on the fact that I have not seen or heard of such a fund in previous city's budget meetings or documents.I wonder how Council members feel about this and of course our Kamloops citizens?
Posted by: Jim Moorhead | February 11, 2014 at 08:58 AM