By Angela Brown

City not planning to re-work budget after $4,000 loss

Apr 25, 2018 | 5:00 PM

The City of North Battleford won’t have to readjust its 2018 budget this year since the new provincial budget didn’t have a significant impact on the municipality, with only about a $4,000 loss overall this year.

In comparison, last year the city had to revisit its budget after experiencing a $1.3-million shortfall as a result of cuts in the 2017 provincial budget.

“It wasn’t as bad as last year,” said Mayor Ryan Bater following council Monday. “The big change for us was the reinstatement of the royalty payments to the city by SaskEnergy customers that are located within the city. That is a practice that has existed since Buddy Holly was still alive. It will now be reinstated. So basically we lost 2017.”

He said in 2017 the province capped the amount the city lost.

“The impact is not that big in terms of new revenue over last year,” he said.

Real Estate

Buying or selling a house? Do your homework first

1h ago

NB council

City approves new land sale on Buhler Bay

2h ago

Sharing memories

North Stars reflect on one-year anniversary of 2023 championship

19h ago

As a result he said the budget the city developed in December 2017 for 2018 will “stand the way it is.”

The mayor said the city will find a way to make up for the $4,000 loss.

“We will find the savings,” Bater said. “It’s not going to impact budget and it won’t impact the three per cent proposed increase to property taxation.”

He said the city expects administration to prepare mill rates based on the 2018 budget the city adopted in December, 2017.

“Based on the comments tonight [Monday] we would expect to see something from administration in our first meeting in May,” Bater said. “That will be for council to consider. Ideally, we would have mill rates established by the end of May so that administration can process the property tax notices in time.”

According to the city’s Director of Finance Amarjit Mahil’s report, the impact to the city’s budget from the provincial budget for 2018 factoring in the SaskEnergy Grant in Lieu and the Operational Grant works out to a total net deficit of $3,929.

City Manager Jim Puffalt said the city can “easily manage” the reduction compared to the April, 2017 provincial budget impact.

“We thank the province for hearing the citt’s concerns and determining a course of action that did not make the impacts upon the city any worse,” Puffalt said.

He said North Battleford’s payments from the province, SaskPower and SaskEnergy royalties are still almost $1,274,000 less than the city received in 2016. He added that amount also doesn’t take into effect the changes involving PST on construction and insurance premiums.

 angela.brown@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @battlefordsnow