City spending plan for 2001
Tara Kearsey
Northern News Services
Yellowknife (Nov 15/00) - Councillors have their calculators and pencils out as they review the city's 2001 draft budget.
City administrators made the document public Friday. It was presented to council during in-camera sessions of the Priorities, Policies and Budget Committee meeting today and Thursday.
The budget calls for revenue totalling $14,149,000 and expenditures of $16,380,000.
To make up the difference, $995,000 will be transferred from the utility fund and $127,000 from the solid waste fund.
City administrators have also cut $50,000 from community grants funding and lowered contingency funding by $144,000.
The budget also predicts two significant revenue losses this year.
The city expects to get $93,000 less in property taxes from Giant Mine property in 2001, the result of a decreased property assessment and scaled back mining operations. Tax penalty revenue is also expected to decline by $300,000 as a result of council's decision to reduce the penalty rate on tax arrears from 1.8 per cent to 1.0 per cent monthly if the individual entered into a monthly repayment plan.
Property taxes are expected to increase by only $135,000 in 2001.
At the same time, the city will see a $155,000 increase in wages due to a $1,250 increase for employees negotiated in the 1999 contract reached with unionized civic workers.
That will be offset by a reduction of employees in the Public Works Department.
Another bite on the budget is higher oil prices, resulting in a $73,000 increase in water and sewer expenditures.
Work on a new arena is expected to begin in the last quarter of 2001. The project will cost more than $6 million, all of which will be taken out of the Major Community Facility Reserve. However, only $1.3 million is budgeted for 2001.
The 2001 Draft Budget can be viewed at City Hall, the library or on the city's Web site. The public will have an opportunity to comment on the proposed budget during a special council meeting on Nov. 20 at 6 p.m.
