The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink AboutThe Times Advocate, 2004-03-10, Page 3Wednesday, March 10, 2004 Exeter Times -Advocate 3 County still looking at major tax increase By Pauline Kerr SPECIAL TO THE T -A tGODERICH — "Totally unacceptable" is how county Coun. Doug Layton of North Huron described the county's 2004 draft budget. After two days of debate March 2 and 4, going through the budget item by item, county council members meeting as the committee of the whole managed to whittle the increase down to 32.7 per cent. A number of councillors said they could not take this figure back to their councils. The next step in the budget process will include looking at the cost of borrowing money to bring the increase down to a more accept- able 15 per cent. This would allow necessary work to be done while spreading the cost over several years. In addition, it would not commit the county to a major increase that would appear in future budgets. As Warden Bill Dowson explained, "If we come in at 35 per cent this year, we'll have the same, plus another eight or nine per cent or whatever next year, and the year after that..." Dowson made it clear he is not committed to borrowing money, but he feels it is an option that needs to be looked at. A number of staff mem- bers and councillors stressed that delaying work a year or two does not save money. Not only do costs keep going up, but a year or two of dete- rioration can mean a much more extensive — and expensive —job. The original draft bud- get presented by staff Jan. 20 saw an increase to the levy of 54.3 per cent, or $11,187,447 over last year. Staff were directed to prepare a revised budget with two options, a 25 per cent increase and a 15 per cent increase. Staff were also told to detail the impact on the level of service. Dowson said council members and staff did their best to pare down the budget to achieve an acceptable increase, but said, "We still have to do something." The county has until April 30 to come up with a final budget. Dowson explained the 2004 budget is "making up for the years when there were no budget increases", combined with provincial down- loading. The report prepared by staff to present at the March 2 and 4 committee meetings noted "provin- cial funding has not kept up with the expenditures required to perform provincially mandated programs", with three particular areas listed - land ambulance, health unit and highways. Over the years, county staff has not increased while taking on addition- al responsibilities. Wages have increased, along with costs, but the levy has not. The report stated the use of reserves over the years left the county's reserve levels low, result- ing in the county setting minimum reserve levels in 2003. The 2004 budget does not meet these mini- mum levels. Cutting corners After the completion of the March council meet- ing in record time, the warden opened budget talks by saying, "I've had a lot of people on the street saying, `Don't start cutting corners now... at the same time, don't raise my taxes." As discussion pro- gressed, it became obvi- ous there will be a lot of corners cut. "A lot of work in the budget won't get done this year," he said. And taxes will be going up. Some items with little apparent impact on the county remained in the budget. The county had previously decided to participate in the Juno Beach Brick Challenge which will honour Canada's war effort. It was listed for removal from the budget in both the 25 per cent and 15 per cent options. Council voted to keep it in the budget. At the same time, major cuts were made to the road, culverts and bridges portion of the budget. Council voted to decrease the overall bud- get for roads by $1.5 mil- lion. Enhanced summer ambulance service may or may not be a go, depending on the province. Council approved $167,000, which would be the coun- ty's portion (half) of the cost. The concept of enhanced summer ser- vice did not have the unanimous support of council. "With the budget impacts we're looking at now... talking about enhanced service seems inappropriate," said Coun. Bernie MacLellan of Huron East. He noted the trial run indicated only a perceived improvement of service, less than a two -minute decrease in response time. "It won't make sense having an extra ambulance sitting around if there are no roads," he said. Coun. Jim Fergusson of Bluewater warned if rumours the province may be taking back ambulance service turn out to be true, cutting the extra vehicle out of the budget at this time wouldn't leave any options. The warden agreed. "We need to keep it in place," Dowson said. Coun. Joseph Seili of Huron East said if the county keeps "propping up" ambulance service out of property taxes, the province won't take back the service. Waste Household hazardous waste days will stay in the budget — at this point. At $45,000, most councillors agreed it's an excellent program and serves to keep hazardous materials out of the land- fill. Scott Tousaw, direc- tor of public works and planning, told council there wouldn't be much of a savings by having the days every second year. Come on over. We're celebrating! Our valued customers mean a lot to us so we're making a fuss with an RBC Royal Bank "Customer Appreciation Day" Open House, on Friday March 12, 2004. Please come in and join us for coffee and doughnuts and welcome # Kris Thompson, Personal Financial Services Representative f 4 L and Jill McCallum Manager, Personal Financial Services who have recently joined our team. 226 Main Street South Exeter RBC Royal Bank RBC Roads Some bridge, culvert and road work that needs doing will get put off for another year. Don Pletch, county engi- neer, told council some of the projects in the budget had already been deferred from last year's budget. The focus will have to be maintaining culverts and bridges on county roads, he said. Not only large projects will be affected. Road patrols will be reduced in number, meaning road kill won't be cleaned up as quickly. Groups like Road Watch and Crime Stoppers that have looked to the county to erect their signs will no longer be able to do so. Roads may be closed a little more frequently as maintenance standards are reduced to the mini- mum that's acceptable. Safety is the prime con- cern, Pletch said, mean- ing areas with lower speed limits — urban areas — will be the first to be let go. Coun. Deb Shewfelt of Goderich questioned the urgent need for a lot of road work. "When did our roads deteriorate?" he asked. "I do a lot of driving and the only place you fmd good roads is in Huron." Pletch said now the county has a good roads system, but they have to be maintained. Roads have to be repaved about every 20 years, he said. Libraries Coun. Rosemary Rognvaldson of Howick argued against eliminat- ing the Howick branch library. "A large number of people have committed to the library," she said, adding that money has already been spent on the project. MacLelland backed her. "We made a commitment last year... we gave our word and should stand by it." Also left in the budget were Sunday openings for libraries. A 32.7 per cent increase At the end of the day, the 54 per cent budget increase had been almost cut in half. However, at 32.7 per cent over last year (an extra $112.29 per $100,000 of assessment), with probable increases in the municipal and edu- cation taxes, the county budget is far from final. Coun. Paul Klopp of Bluewater commented, "We do have to go to the province and say this was downloaded on us ... maybe we can revert back to the old system, or maybe they can get us some of the gas tax." Rognvaldson urged councillors to follow her lead and sign up to make a presentation during MPP Carol Mitchell's pre- budget consultations. Layton said, "We can't expect the taxpayer to absorb this. We have to get this thing down." Coun. Dorothy Kelly of Morris-Turnberry said she'd prefer to start with a 15 per cent increase and start cutting there. She told about a phone call she had received from a senior citizen on a fixed income. "Her assessment went up $40,000," Kelly said. "What is she supposed to do?" "We spent a lot of time getting it to 32," said Dowson. "We have to fmd another way." tA1 J Gaiser ""+ Knkeale EXETER er --1235-2420 GRAND BEND - 238-8484 CLINTON - 482-3401 •••••••••••••••••••••••• •• • •A • • 123 • • • • • •ARCH • • • • TOUCH OF CLASS &. 125 King St. Hensall, Ont. NOM 1X0 Information: 519-262-3087 • ••• • • : • • • • • • • Cann: , _,• -, 13, 2004 M' Ite 4- Furniture/ 3rcw.d,Ncum,&Itevww 3eddiv , raw • . Ba uroom,Acce orie.s- TOO MUCH TO LIST • COME & SEE IT TO BELIEVE IT! • DMS Donnelly & Murphy Barristers & Solicitors The partners of Donnelly & Murphy are pleased to announce that Joan D. P. Krantz has joined the firm. Joan is a native of Stratford and completed her Law Degree at the University of Western Ontario. She was called to the Bar in 1986 and has since that time practiced and taught in London. Joan has extensive experience in Real Estate, Mortgage Enforcement, Corporate and Business Law and will be in charge of our Real Estate and Corporate Commercial Department. For an appointment to meet Ms. Krantz please call our office. Donnelly & Murphy have been providing service and advice to clients in Southwestern Ontario for over 70 years. 18 The Square, Goderich, Ontario Phone: (519) 524-2154 Fax: (519) 524-8550 email: admin@dmlaw.on.ca A Tradition Of Results