The next special budget meeting for the City of Saskatoon takes place on Tuesday, but city administration is adjusting the starting line and tightening the gap a bit.
Previous reports said Saskatoon is facing a $52.4-million funding shortfall next year and a $23.2-million shortfall the year after, equating to an 18.56 per cent property tax increase in 2024 and a 6.95 per cent property tax increase the following year.
An updated assessment, which will be discussed at next week’s meeting, now has the budgetary gap sitting at $50.9 million next year and $21.7 million the following year, with those tax increases estimated at 17.33 per cent and 6.25 per cent.
The report, written by director of finance Kari Smith, said the finalization of the 2022-23 fiscal year-end financial results gave the city a better estimate of the numbers.
Several other reports are on the table for the upcoming meeting, the next of which delves into 11 areas that city administration suggests cutting from to bridge the gap.
The 2024-25 Budget Inflationary and Phase-in Decisions report, written by chief financial officer Clae Hack, offered up options to defer funding from Saskatoon Light and Power, roadway preservation, Saskatoon fire apparatus, civic building comprehensive maintenance, fuel estimates, the Saskatoon Fire Station phase-in, transit future service phase-in, East leisure operating phase-in, snow and ice phase-in, transit bus growth phase-in and negative contingency.
The report said those items account for $27 million, or 51.5 per cent of the pressure the city faces in 2024.
It also gives three options: a base deferral and planned future phase-in plan, a more significant deferral and future phase-in plan, or allowing council to set specific deferral numbers for each item.
City administration recommends that the more significant deferral and phase-in plan be chosen, noting in the report that it doesn’t see another path to get under 10 per cent for a 2024 property tax impact.
The 2024 and 2025 Budget Reduction Allocation Estimates report goes over how much of a reduction is needed in each business line to reach a targeted tax increase percentage.
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It looks at what it would take to reach a nine per cent, six per cent or a four per cent property tax increase.
A reduction of $26,987,125 in 2024 is required to meet the nine per cent goalpost. A reduction of $35,460,325 in 2024 and a $5,296,519 reduction in 2025 is needed to meet the six per cent goal post. A $41,109,125 reduction in 2024 and a $11,480,481 reduction the following year is needed to hit four per cent.
The report also gave options for allocation methods for the required reductions, showing what would need to be cut from each business line if they were to base it on operating revenues and expenditures, as well as what would need to be cut if they instead based it on where the funding gap pressures are coming from.
Reports are also given regarding each business line, delving into transportation, community support, Saskatoon fire, environmental health, taxation and general revenues, land development and arts, culture and events venues, offering several options on where to cut and slash in each area.
Some of the options in those lists include increasing parking ticket penalty amounts as well as parking rates, increasing pet licensing rates and fees, increasing cemetery fees, delaying or eliminating street sweeping, reducing the civic building comprehensive maintenance contribution phase-in by $41,000 for 2024, and reducing the snow and ice management service levels.
After discussions in previous meetings about city staff numbers, a report was also given regarding full-time equivalent staff in Saskatoon compared with other municipalities.
Hack had mentioned in previous interviews that an apples-to-apples comparison between municipalities when it came to full-time equivalent staff was difficult, and the charts given on the comparison and trends show that, with many stipulations listed under each chart.
One of the charts looked at City of Saskatoon full-time equivalent staff on a per capita basis, including civic operations, non-tax supported services, police, utilities, controlled corporations and capital.
The number of staff per 1,000 people didn’t change much over several years, with the total number sitting roughly between 12 and 15 between 2016 and 2022.
A report on the temporary workforce in the city’s employ was also given, showing the different allocations of staff across the city.
It said 381 employees are considered part of the temporary workforce and account for 12.1 per cent of the total workforce.
The report broke down the length of service for these employees, noting just over 70 per cent of them have less than a year of service, just over 15 per cent have one to two years of service, over seven per cent have two to three years, and none of them have over 10 years of service under their belt.
Other things on the table for the Tuesday meeting include a comparison of growth in federal, provincial and municipal operating budgetary expenditures between 2017 and 2023, as well as a report on the impacts that the hiring freeze has had on the city.
After Tuesday, the city has another meeting revolving around budget discussions on Aug. 15.
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