The City of Kimberley is now just one more vote away from final adoption of the 2017 to 2021 financial plan, as Council granted first three readings to the the budget bylaws at their regular meeting on April 24, 2017.
City CFO Jim Hendricks said that this was the final stages of work that began last September.
“This sets out budgeted expenses and revenue through to 2021,” he said. “It sets out tax rates set for each class of assessment. It’s quite an aggressive capital plan over the next five years.”
Residential tax rates have been set at 1.9 per cent for the next year. And that revenue is going right into a fund for additional road repairs.
“Council as a whole worked very hard on this,” saId Coun. Darryl Oakley. “Finding the extra money for infrastructure renewal and offering as low a rate for residential taxes as possible was quite a feat.”
Count. Sandra Roberts said she appreciated how hard all managers worked to find ways to cut their budgets and Mayor Don McCormick said staff had done great work on the financial plan.
One of the bylaws given three readings dealt with a further reduction of $80 to the flat tax. This has been the source of some disagreement on Council as some argued that the flat tax was unfair to lower valued property owners and others feared that reduction adds to the mill rate for higher value property owners.
“I think it’s an important tax to slowly eliminate,” said Oakley. “It’s important for lower end owners. But it’s equally important to try to figure out how to not affect the mill rate for higher end. That’s the challenge.”
McCormick, who had argued against the flat tax reduction, said that was the issue.
“I’m certainly not opposed to the reduction of the flat tax, but I am uncomfortable with the plan to shift the mill rate. We already have the highest mill rate in the Kootenays.”
McCormick said that with the continued reduction of the flat tax over the next eight years, the mill rate could see as much as a 40 per cent increase.
“That increase won’t produce a single dollar in new revenue for the city,” he said. “We need to look more closely at this. We need an impact assessment.”
The Financial Plan is due to come back to Council for adoption in May.