HomeMy WebLinkAboutFIN-2021-53 - 2022 Budget Schedule Revision
Committee of the Whole
REPORT TO:
DATE OF MEETING: September 20, 2021
SUBMITTED BY: Ryan Hagey, Director of Financial Planning & Reporting
PREPARED BY: Debbie Andrade, Manager of Budgets
WARD(S) INVOLVED: All Wards
DATE OF REPORT: September 10, 2021
REPORT NO.: FIN-2021-53
SUBJECT: 2022 Budget Schedule Revision
RECOMMENDATION:
That the revised 2022 Budget Meeting Schedule, as outlined in report FIN-2021-53 be
approved.
REPORT HIGHLIGHTS:
The purpose of this report is to revise the existing 2022 budget schedule, including
identifying Thursday December 16 as Final Budget Day.
This report supports the delivery of core services.
BACKGROUND:
Each year the City establishes its financial priorities and sets rates (e.g. tax, utility, user fee)
through the annual budget process. This includes a series of reports/presentations
providing information and recommendations on user fees, operating budgets, and capital
budgets, as well as an opportunity for the public to provide their input on the proposed
budget and associated rate changes.
REPORT:
Many dates for the 2022 budget process have already been identified in the Council
calendar and would remain unchanged with the proposed schedule revisions. The timing
of core items such as user fee presentation & approval, operating & capital budget
presentation, and WIP utility rate approval will be unaffected. The three adjustments
recommended by staff will affect 1) public budget input, 2) gas utility rate approval, and 3)
final budget day. The recommended changes are outlined below.
Public Budget Input push back from November 1 to November 15
This meeting provides residents an opportunity to give their input on the budget directly to
Council. Traditionally this meeting has happened well after the operating and capital
budgets have been presented to Council, but Council expressed an interest in having input
earlier rather than later in the process. The original date of November 1 will be before any
*** This information is available in accessible formats upon request. ***
Please call 519-741-2345 or TTY 1-866-969-9994 for assistance.
of the budget information is publicly available, so staff are recommending pushing input night
back to November 15. At this point in the process, all of the budget information will be
publicly available, but it is still in the midst of the presentations, not well after them.
Gas Utility Rate Approval push back from October 18 to November 29
Gas rates have traditionally been set by Council in the fall to come into effect in November.
This aligns with the typical heating season, but does not align with the rate changes of other
gas utilities in the province or Staff
are recommending Gas utility rates be set on the same day as the Water Infrastructure
Program (WIP) utilities and the rate changes come into effect on January 1, just like the WIP
utilities and other gas utilities in Ontario.
Final Budget Day advance from January 2022 to December 16
Final budget day is when Council approves the operating and capital budgets for the year.
Traditionally this meeting has taken place in mid-January, which means the year has already
started without a firm commitment to spending in the year. Staff are recommending
advancing this meeting from January 2022 to December 16. This will allow departments to
start delivering services and capital projects with fully established budgets heading into the
new year.
The revised budget schedule is shown in the table below. Dates that have changed are
noted with a *.
Revised 2022 Budget Meeting Schedule
Date Day Budget Item Meeting
November 8 Monday (day) User fee presentation FCSC
November 15 Monday (day) Operating Budget presentation FCSC (Special)
November 15* Monday (night) Public Budget Input FCSC (Special)
November 22 Monday (night) User fees approval Council
November 29 Monday (day) Capital Budget presentation FCSC (Special)
WIP Utility rates &
November 29* Monday (day) Council (Special)
Gas rates approval
FCSC (Special) &
December 16* Thursday (day) Final Budget approval
Council (Special)
STRATEGIC PLAN ALIGNMENT:
This report supports the delivery of core services.
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT:
INFORM
the council / committee meeting.
APPROVED BY: Jonathan Lautenbach, Chief Financial Officer