Jessica Klymchuk i– Kamloops This Week
Although a zero per cent tax increase sounds positive, many municipalities are sacrificing their future to do so.
So said City of Kamloops CAO David Trawin as he addressed members of the Canadian Home Builders’ Association-Central Interior (CHBA-CI) recently.
“Municipalities that have a zero per cent tax increase are sometimes selling their future for a quick and easy gain in the present and I don’t believe that is the way to go,” he said.
Trawin suggested municipalities are achieving a zero per cent tax increase by borrowing, depleting their reserves and producing their capital reinvestment in their assets.
He noted Kamloops has a $152-million operating budget, with 51.3 per cent coming from real property taxes. Of the $93 million in capital, property taxes represent 52.6 per cent.
Trawin noted the provincial property-tax average on a standard house in 2013 was $2,903. In Kamloops, it is was $2,717.
He noted 2012’s citizen-satisfaction survey on balancing taxation-service delivery levels indicated 53 per cent of respondents were in favour of increasing taxes to enhance, expand or maintain services, while 34 per cent favoured cutting services to maintain or reduce taxes.
However, fewer people are in favour of increasing or maintaining taxes, as a 2003 survey found 60 per cent of respondents in favour.
“There is that time where council will have to be aware it will be in the other direction, where other sources of revenue are going to become more important,” Trawin said.
Although many communities resort to cutting city staff, Trawin called it the “easy way out,” arguing cutting staff leads to inefficient operations across the board.
For the CHBA-CI, he said, this would be reflected in building-permit processing times.
Trawin notd an organizational audit showed staff levels at the City of Kamloops were 8.6 per cent higher than other communities, but operating costs were 9.5 per cent lower.
“I don’t care if I have more staff,” he said.
“If we can get it done cheaper, we’re going to get it done cheaper.”
“I think our future isn’t bad. It’s not perfect. I think we’ve still got a long ways to go and, hopefully, I can help move that way.”