The council in one local municipality is asking colleagues to take another look at its 2024 budget.
LaSalle Town Council has formally asked the administration to refigure the draft budget for next year. Councillors spent all day Wednesday deliberating the 2024 spending plan.
Councillors have requested two options. The first is a five per cent property tax increase, and the second is an increase of 5.5 per cent. The council had also asked for an explanation of what services may need to be reduced or cut.
Mayor Crystal Meloche has acknowledged that the administration has already done its due diligence.
"We understand the challenges of our residents today, and we are also mindful of what this process means for the future of our town and our residents," said Meloche. "With that, we are asking the administration to reduce the municipal tax rate presented and, at the same time, provide transparency about what that will look like when we talk about levels of service and future projects."
If the budget was approved as submitted, residents would have paid an additional $193.42 on the average LaSalle home, valued at $269,000, according to the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC).
Dale Langlois, the Town's Finance Director and Treasurer, said the deliberations were very productive.
"Overall, it was a successful budget deliberation," said Langlois. "There were many continued challenges this year due to high rates of inflation. With that being said, it is going to be difficult to find budget reductions between $570,000 to $780,000 without impacting existing service levels or delaying projects."
Increases in the draft budget would have involved policing, recommended enhancements such as IT upgrades, and increased wages.
The 2024 draft budget is available on the Town of LaSalle's official website.
