REGINA – It could be a grim provincial budget for Saskatchewan cities after Premier Brad Wall suggested there may be changes to how the government shares proceeds of the provincial sales tax (PST).
“In a budget that is very tight, where revenues are flat if not decreasing, we have to look at all the options,” Wall told reporters in Saskatoon on Thursday.
He said the Saskatchewan Party government could re-evaluate the formula for calculating how much municipalities receive.
The news came as a shock to mayors, who said Friday they hadn’t been consulted about any changes.
“We needed predictability,” said Debra Button, Weyburn mayor and president of the Saskatchewan Urban Municipalities Association (SUMA). “To lose it now and have to go back to the drawing board, I’m not sure what kind of freefall that will put our municipalities into.”
Previously referred to as a municipal operating grant, communities use the money to help pay for services like policing and fire response.
Currently, municipal revenue sharing is worth one per cent of the PST, which resulted in $257 million being distributed in 2014-15.
Regina received about $40 million from municipal revenue sharing last year with Saskatoon getting roughly $46 million. Smaller centres like Moose Jaw were handed $7 million while Swift Current took home $3 million.
Wall has already warned of a tight 2015-16 budget due in part to falling oil prices.
“We understand the needs of having a tight budget. We have one every year,” said Regina mayor Michael Fougere. “Our revenue, property tax, does not grow with the economy. So every year we go through this.”
Button said SUMA representatives will meet further with the government in the coming week.
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