Dryden City council isn’t ready to pass it’s 2024 budget just yet.
Right now, council is looking at a 6.57 percent increase in property taxes.
Treasurer Steven Lansdell-Roll says there are increases in almost every external agency they support.
“It includes a $663,000 increase the OPP annual billing, which is approximately a 12.8% increase from 2023,” Lansdell-Roll told council this week at their open meeting.
“We’ve included estimated labour inflation increases for union and non-union staff. We estimated a 10% increase to insurance premiums. That equates to around $56,000. We’ve estimated increases in the social service levies. 6%, which is around $79,000.”
He points out that much of the increase is out of their hands.
“It would say that the Hydro, our social services levies, the insurance premiums, and the OPP billing. These are really items out of our control. And that totals around $920,000.”
Overall, the city is looking at almost a million dollar increase to their budget next year.
Council says it’s wants to review some of the items in the capital budget before passing the overall budget.
It is scheduled to be passed at the December open meeting, but it may be pushed into January if more revisions have to be done to the draft budget.
(File photo)
