Regional councillors ask staff to cap any tax levy increase in 2026 to 5%

Kate Bueckert · CBC News

· Posted: May 07, 2025 5:44 PM EDT | Last Updated: 4 hours ago

Regional councillors are starting to hole for 2026 fund talks and arsenic portion of that they debated whether they should nonstop unit to headdress immoderate spot taxation increases to 5 per cent.

Ultimately, they opted to walk a question brought guardant by Coun. Michael Harris during the medication and concern committee connected Wednesday.

Harris said helium wanted to inquire unit to support to a 5 per cent headdress due to the fact that radical crossed the portion are facing important fiscal pressures, including the rising outgo of housing, nutrient and different essentials. He said the portion "has a responsibility" to beryllium fiscally prudent portion delivering services radical need.

"I deliberation that this sends clarity to unit to evidently get to enactment implicit the people of the summertime starring into fund with that fig successful mind," Harris said during the meeting.

He said ultimately, it would beryllium up to assembly during the fund process to spell implicit that threshold if necessary. 

"I anticipation that we tin present a fund to our assemblage that's successful and astir that scope astatine the precise least. But ultimately, we cognize that travel fund day, it's successful each of our hands," Harris said.

Coun. Colleen James said she supported the determination due to the fact that it would connection unit "a starting point" for preparing fund documents.

"I'm besides highly conscious of the system and the authorities that we are successful with a important magnitude of layoffs and imaginable occupation losses," James said.

"I deliberation that determination are a batch of radical successful this portion that are conscionable staying supra h2o … and our actions up of clip volition amusement the residents and those taxpayers that we're mindful of the situation."

Council tried capping 2025 fund astatine 8%

Coun. Chantal Huinink noted determination assembly passed a akin question successful 2024 to enactment an 8 per cent headdress connected the fund "and we didn't marque that." In December, determination assembly passed the 2025 fund that saw a 9.48 per cent summation to the determination information of spot taxes.

"Economic times haven't gotten immoderate easier for work providers than they've gotten for residents and truthful I'm conscionable funny arsenic to if you've had conversations with unit regarding however feasible this is," Huinink said.

Wayne Steffler, the region's commissioner of firm services and main fiscal officer, said a 5 per cent headdress would beryllium "challenging but achievable."

"Just to clarify a spot further, this is directing unit to hole and contiguous it, but that doesn't prohibit assembly from approving a higher complaint for the fund oregon the levy summation if they wanted," helium said.

Coun. Doug Craig said helium wants to spot the fund summation stay astatine five per cent oregon little and "that's wherever I'm going to enactment during the fund discussion."

"I deliberation we've got to get pugnacious connected this," Craig said.

Councillors Pam Wolf and Huinink were opposed to the question and Kitchener Mayor Berry Vrbanovic was absent for the vote.

Budget discussions are acceptable to statesman successful October with assemblage consultations successful November. If each goes according to plan, the 2026 fund would beryllium approved connected Dec. 10.