Taxes will increase by an average of 3.4% next year in Langueil. Mayor Catherine Fournier acknowledged her commitment to curbing inflation, but said that the 27 million deficit would have to be dealt with because of the previous administration’s “repeated tax stagnation”.
On Wednesday evening, at an extraordinary meeting of the City Council, the first budget of the 29-year-old mayor’s administration was approved. With an increase of 5.8% compared to last year, to a total of nearly 488 million, this budget also offers a 3.4% tax increase, which reminds the Fornier clan that it is under inflation.
According to public data from Statistics Canada, it was actually 4.7% in October and November.
Taxes need to be raised, “especially due to the $ 27 million shortfall next year, which was, to some extent, caused by repeated tax freezes by past administrations,” he said, hammering out the committee’s vice president. And Jonathan Tabara, chairman of the Language Finance Committees, said in a statement.
However, “there is a significant reduction in the deficit estimate to be filled in the next three years, from $ 27 million this year to about $ 9 million next year, and a plan to finally reach equilibrium by 2025. Thanks to various budget measures.”
“Our goal is no longer to sink our meager reserves to compensate for cost growth,” Mr. Tabara explains in this regard.
Catherine Fournier recalls that her team had “little room for maneuver” in terms of “adoption schedules and available resources”. She confirms that the budget was approved “under the banner of citizen participation and science”. Approximately $ 250,000 will be allocated for the establishment of the Citizen Participation Office, an elected spokesman promised to set up this fall in the election campaign.
The administration will also formulate for the first time after the municipality merges a three-year assessment roll for buildings 2022-2023-2024, which will take effect in January. “The purpose of this action is to avoid further disparities between the boroughs, as Greenfield Park and Saint-Hubert’s warming assets experience a higher average value than Vieux-Longueuil. First buyers.”
Only one elected member voted against the budget. In fact, he is the only councilor who does not represent or affiliate with the Coalition’s Language banner: Leader of the Opposition and Jacques Lemire, elected to the Language ensemble. He argued on Wednesday that there was nothing specifically planned in the budget to assess the impact of the Omicron variant and the increase in COVID-19 cases on public finance.
In Montreal, the average residential property tax bill Next year there will be a 2% increase in Montreal and especially financial support for a significant increase in the police budget. Metropolis will double its spending on roaming and continue to invest in the network of bicycle routes as well as public transport, Mayor Valerie Plante announced Wednesday.
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