Barrie caps yearly increases at 3%

By BOB BRUTON – Barrie ExaminerMay 23 2012

A line in the sand has already been drawn on Barrie’s expenditures next year.

The city’s finance and corporate services committee decided year-over-year cost increases shouldn’t exceed 3%, not counting new debt services charges, at Wednesday evening’s meeting.

“It’s good to set the expectation,” said Mayor Jeff Lehman, although the 2013 budget won’t pass until January. “This is the very beginning of the budget process, the starting line. All of the numbers are subject to change.”

The committee also approved looking at using the tax rate stabilization fund, which sits at about $5 million, to help reduce next year’s property tax increase.

But Coun. Michael Prowse, committee chairman, said this must be used with caution.

“This is an ‘in case of emergency break glass’ fund, for extreme circumstances,” he said. “It’s not to fund on-going operations — paperclips, etc.”

A city staff report on 2013 budget directions included a starting point for next year’s property tax increase for Barrie homeowners of 6.4%.

Lehman’s motion replaced that starting point, and Ed Archer, the city’s general manager of corporate services, said that number is just part of the budget process.

“No one is anticipating we are going to have a 6% tax increase in 2013,” he said. “This is where we are starting from and we will see changes that address this.”

Lehman also sent the section of the 2013 budget directions motion concerning water and sewer rate increases of 10% and 15% respectively back to staff for another look.

City staff were asked earlier this year to re-visit the plan for full recovery of water/wastewater costs in six years, and look at a 10-year plan instead.

Lehman and other councillors have expressed concerns about these level of water/sewer rate increases, and whether they are affordable for city homeowners.

“We are paying for really expensive assets, and we are trying to pay for them in three or four or five years, when the assets will last 100 years,” Lehman said, of Barrie water/sewer infrastructure.

Wednesday’s motion, and the spending targets it sets, now goes to city council’s general committee for its consideration.

The 2012 business and capital plan increased property taxes for homeowners by 3% and hikes water/sewer rates by 15%.

The blended 3.03% hike adds $104 in taxes on a typical Barrie house assessed at $272,000, bringing its tax total to $3,701 this year from $3,597 in 2011.

The water/wastewater rate increases adds a combined total of $82 for a typical household consuming 180 cubic metres annually, bringing water/sewer costs for that household to $600 this year.

Bottom line? Property owners are paying another $186 in taxes and water/sewer fees in 2012.

The payment period was extended to 35 from 21 days for water/sewer bills — to give residents a little more time to pay, and to help those on fixed incomes.