The city’s budget process will be split in two next time around and include a transit pilot project aimed at helping high school students, Mayor Cam Guthrie has ordered.
Those are among Guthrie’s instructions in a directive that will see staff prepare the draft 2025 budget with a property tax increase of four per cent or less, down from the currently set 9.79 per cent.
As a result, the bulk of the budget will be dealt with first, covering capital plans and service delivery, followed a couple months later by council’s boards and committees such as police, library and WDG Public Health, which council doesn’t have direct control over.
“That separation, I think even visually, for the community is important to see,” Guthrie said, who earlier this month announced his intent to use the so-called strong mayor powers given to him last summer by the provincial government.
“If our budgets are coming in at a restrained amount, taking all things under consideration, it sets a tone and expectations for the outside boards to be able to do the same.”
Council doesn’t have the ability to change those board and committee budgets. It can, however, request those boards and committees make changes.
Like last year, the impact of provincial underfunding of services will be separated out, but that will be included within the first portion of the budget.
The collective impact, Guthrie clarified, is to be a property tax increase of four per cent or less.
Further, the draft budget is to come with a list of any projects that have been delayed by city staff.
Guthrie’s order also directs staff to follow a different process on public consultation. This time around, the draft budget is to be publicly released before it’s formally presented to council as “proposed.” The latter is what starts the clock ticking on the provincially mandated limit of 30 days for budget amendments to be made.
Last year, city officials completed that part of the finalization process within 27 days.
“It’s not about getting around anything, it’s just a different way,” Guthrie said.
“There’s some grace to be given here,” he added of the process followed last year, which was the first under the provincially shortened timeline. “Every city was thrown this as their first time trying to manoeuvre through this process.”
Releasing a draft budget before the proposed budget’s presentation to council will allow more time for the public to provide input and recommendations.
“Then council can either deem to adopt it or they can move amendments as they wish,” Guthrie said.
The mayor’s budget order also includes the creation of a one-year pilot project that, if approved, would see free Guelph Transit rides for high school students after 4 p.m. on weekdays and throughout weekends.
“It’s something I’ve been trying to bring forward,” Guthrie said of the idea, noting he campaigned on the idea the past two elections and was planning to put it forward in 2020 but his attention went elsewhere during the heart of the pandemic. “I want to follow through on that issue.”
