Engage Budget 2019

Let’s build the budget together.

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The 2018 budget consultations took place between April 24 and May 23, 2018. The public feedback gathered through this process will allow the City to develop a budget that reflects Winnipeggers’ priorities for key services and infrastructure while investing in the future of our city. Feedback was compiled into a Public Engagement Report to provide input in the budget development process. Please visit the Documents tab to view the full report and summaries.

Following Engagement

Thank you to all who participated in the Budget 2019 public engagement. Public feedback will allow the City to develop a budget that reflects Winnipeggers’ priorities for key services and infrastructure while investing in the future of our city. Now that the public engagement program is complete, feedback will be compiled into a Public Engagement Report to provide input in the budget development process.

Last year, during the 2018 budget consultations, we received positive feedback on involving the public earlier in the budget process, and also heard that the public wanted more meaningful, in-person, and more straightforward online tools to provide feedback.

We learned from the 2018 budget engagement process and our public engagement goals for this year reflect your feedback:

• Engage citizens in the conversation about the infrastructure deficit and the need to begin taking action with the 2019 budget.
• Include a wide range of Winnipeggers from different perspectives and backgrounds in the conversation.
• Provide multiple mechanisms and opportunities to participate so everyone can find some way to contribute input.

If you would like to stay updated on City of Winnipeg public engagement events, follow the City on Facebook and Twitter, or sign up for the City of Winnipeg public engagement newsletter.

Timeline

The current City funding model is unsustainable. The City of Winnipeg is facing some difficult decisions following the first ever State of the Infrastructure Report. Facing a projected tax supported shortfall of $85.9 million and a $6.9 billion infrastructure deficit, the City must use every annual budget as a tool for change and more sustainable decisions.

The budget must strike a balance between current fiscal challenges and investment in services and infrastructure. The City is legally required to balance its budget under The City of Winnipeg Charter.

As the city keeps growing, demands on City services and infrastructure keep growing and outpacing the City’s ability to fund them adequately. A budget will be prepared that reflects citizens’ priorities for key services and infrastructure while investing in the future of our city. The 2019 budget will be built with Winnipeggers by identifying priorities and tradeoffs.

Because of population growth at historically high rates, demands are placing increasingly large pressures on both the operating and capital budgets to the extent that there is an unsustainable structural deficit in the tax-supported operating budget and a parallel infrastructure deficit in the capital budget.

On an annual basis, the Public Service prepares a 6-year capital investment plan as required by The City of Winnipeg Charter for Council-consideration, which includes the current year’s capital budget and a 5-year capital forecast. Additionally, 4-year longer-term capital projections are prepared by the Public Service for planning purposes.

Over the next 10 years (2018 – 2027), over $4.0 billion is estimated to go towards investments in the City’s infrastructure; however, that level of funding is not adequate to address the City’s infrastructure needs. The 2018 deficit is pegged at approximately $6.9 billion, with transportation services making up the majority of the overall deficit (70 percent). The deficit has identified a higher need to address existing infrastructure requirements compared to new infrastructure. This is due in part because many larger scale projects that are contemplated in the forecasted period are not currently funded.

Budget 2018

In 2017, the City engaged the public to find out their priorities before building the 2018 budget. The public’s input was reflected in the 2018 Budget as explained in the table below.

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2019 Tax Supported Projected Revenues - $1,096.9 million

Pie chart showing 2019 projected revenues of $1,096.9 million: 55.3%, $606.4 million, in Property Tax; 5.9%, $64.7 million, in Other, *Includes dividends from utilities, annual payment from the sale of Winnipeg Hydro and miscellaneous department revenue; 0.9%, $9.6 million, in Transfers from other funds; 1.8%, $20.4 million in Interest; 4.6%, $51.0 million in Sale of goods and services; 5.4%, $58.8 million in Regulation fees; 12.7%, $139.2 million in Government grants; 5.8%, $63.4 million in Street renewal frontage levy; 2.4%, $26.5 million in Other taxation; and 5.2%, $56.9 million in Business tax.

Date added: April 24, 2018

2019 Tax Supported Projected Expenditures - $1,182.8 million

Pie chart showing 2018 projected expenditures of $1,182.8 million: 25.4%, $299.9 million, for Police Service; 22.2%, $262.1 million for Public Works; 17.5%, $207.2 million for Fire Paramedic Service; 10.4%, $123.2 million for Community Services; 3.8%, $45.2 million for Planning, Property and Development; 2.0%, $23.2 million for Solid Waste Collection; 1.2%, $14.3 million for Street Lighting; 3.4%, $40.2 million for Corporate Support Services; 2.0%, $24.1 million for Assessment and Taxation; 0.8%, $9.5 million for Corporate Finance; 1.2%, $14.2 million for City Clerk's; 1.4%, $17.0 million for Other Departments **Includes Chief Administrative Offices, Council and Mayor's Office, Audit, Office of Policy & Strategic Initiatives, Legal Services, Museums; 1.6%, $19.4 million, for Corporate Expenditures, *Fixed corporate costs; and 7.1%, $83.3 million, for Contribution to Transit.

Date added: April 24, 2018

Budgetary challenges didn’t happen overnight. The increased demand on services, due largely to growth and other factors, has outpaced the City’s ability to fund them adequately.

1997 - The City had comparably high residential property taxes relative to other Canadian cities.

1998 - The City began freezing property taxes (and therefore revenue received.)

1998-2011 - Property taxes were either cut or frozen. By the end of the period the City had an overall 6% property tax revenue reduction. But the city still grew and tax-supported expenditures continued increasing.

Over the last 15 years (1999-2017), other cities have continued to approve annual property tax increases for use for both their operating budgets and their capital/infrastructure budgets.

Cumulatively, these amount to significant increases relative to Winnipeg’s 11.3% property tax increases, as displayed in the table below.

1999-2018 Annual Property Tax Increases for Canadian Municipalities

City	1999 to 2009	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	Increases Added 1999 to 2017	2018
Vancouver	43.7%	2.0%	2.0%	2.8%	2.0%	1.9%	2.4%	2.3%	2.0%	63.0%	4.24%
Edmonton	50.1%	5.0%	3.9%	5.4%	3.3%	4.9%	5.7%	3.4%	3.4%	84.6%	3.2%
Calgary	42.4%	4.8%	5.0%	6.0%	5.5%	5.0%	4.5%	3.5%	0.0%	76.7%	3.8%
Saskatoon	37.1%	3.9%	4.0%	4.0%	5.0%	7.4%	5.3%	3.96%	3.9%	73.3%	4.7%
Regina	23.6%	4.0%	4.0%	3.9%	4.5%	5.9%	3.9%	3.3%	4.2%	59.6%	4.3%
Winnipeg	-6.0%	0.0%	0.0%	3.5%	3.9%	2.95%	2.3%	2.33%	2.33%	11.3%	2.33%

2017 Municipal Property Tax Comparison
Based on either average or median house values

Tax Supported Operating Budget - Forecast

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In addition to the freeze on property taxes, the gap between forecasted tax supported expenditures and revenues is due to other factors, including:

• Population growth;
• Increasing costs of construction, and;
• Increasing costs of labour and staffing levels.

Date added: April 24, 2018

• State of the Infrastructure Report
• Corporate Finance – Home
• Corporate Finance Documents - Budgets
• City of Winnipeg Budget Information
• Open Budget