Mayor Ann Lawlor's December 2024 Message

Last week, the Halton Hills Council dedicated several hours to discussing the 2025 Town of Halton Hills capital and operating budgets. The budget is a fundamental document which will shape services that our residents can access and enjoy in the next year.

Here are some of the factors that influenced the final budget figures.

Our Halton Hills residents are proud, and frankly, standards are high. It is expected that our parks and playing fields will be well-maintained, that hundreds of kilometers of roads and sidewalks will be paved and plowed, and that aquafit classes and day camps will be professionally staffed. Building permits must be efficiently issued following thorough inspections. Top-notch legal arguments must be crafted for appeals at the Ontario Land Tribunal. Emergency responders must be ready. Taken all together, it costs a lot of money to operate a municipality of our size and caliber.

Staff first prepared a budget which reflected sound professional recommendations. All the hundreds of items in the staff budget had validity; they included new legislated and downloaded responsibilities required by the Province, as well as improvements, essential repairs, efficiencies, and needs and wants expressed by our residents.

The municipal cost to pay for these items, though, is rising, literally, by the millions. Big ticket items such as roads represent a generous portion of the budget. But the Town’s non-tax revenues, such as development charges, are down. Assessment growth is currently flat. And our capital and emergency reserve funds are lower than they should be, so dipping into those dollar buckets is not prudent.

As your Mayor, I took a thorough review of the staff-recommended budget and concluded that the property tax increases proposed in the 2025 staff-recommended budget were simply too steep. Our residents are feeling inflation in basic living expenses - especially housing, heating, transportation, and food. Many people are on fixed incomes, and dollars are precious.

I resolved to reduce the local property tax increase to below 5%.

In reviewing how to pare the budget, I considered recommendations from members of Council, public feedback from local budget meetings where residents urged keeping increases low, and how each department, from recreation and parks to transportation and public works and corporate administration, could share in spending reductions.

I also looked at expenses that could be deferred or phased in over the next few years, recognizing that this “kicks the can down the road” and then fewer capital projects are possible. Some roads will not be paved, facilities will not be expanded, and needed parkland will not be purchased.

Additionally, I explored finding other sources of revenue, such as grants and fundraising, to finance important projects like the development of the 8th Line Park beside the Gellert Centre. Lastly, I aimed to keep Halton Hills in the ‘middle of the pack’ when comparing residential taxes across other GTA municipalities.

During the Budget Committee deliberations, members of Council made some additional recommendations and tough decisions were made. Some additional investment will occur with special levies for fire services and repairs to facilities. Legal and enforcement activity will also be stepped up.

When all is said and done, the Town portion of the residential property tax increase will be 4.4%. This amounts to an increase of about $40 per $100,000 Current Value Assessment for a home in Halton Hills. A home currently assessed at $600,000 will have its annual taxes increased by about $240 or $20 per month.

(It should be noted that the Region of Halton, Halton Regional Police, and the School Boards are also funded out of the municipal property tax base. These budgets are determined separately from our local Halton Hills budget but are blended to create the final residential tax bill. Decisions on those budgets are expected imminently, and residents will be informed.)

I am committed to fiscal responsibility while maintaining the ambitious standards of service that our residents expect and deserve.

And with that, Merry Christmas, Season’s Greetings and Best Wishes for 2025!