By Eric Stern
June 19th, 2024
BURLINGTON, ON
Many Burlington residents have joined the “STOP the 2025 Burlington Property Tax Increases”. They see 8.9% as the number being used by the Finance department as they prepare the 2024-2025 budget.
Those opposed to tax increases use Next Door, a social media platform where they exchange ideas and register their concerns. It is a different kind of citizen engagement.
Eric Stern
If you are interested in joining the group follow the link HERE
One Next Door member, Lynn K., shared an email she wrote to “the office of the mayor” along with the response from Hannelie van Niekerk who is part of the four member team in the Mayor’s office.
Here are a few quotes from Lynn’s email to the city.
“Do you care about what you are doing to the personal financial hardships of the residents in your wards?”
“The 2024 tax increase was a slap in the face with broken promises and outright lies, spinning the numbers hoping nobody would notice the real increase.”
“As a retired career banker of almost 40 years, I have worked through every phase of the inflation/recession cycle.”
The paragraphs below, set out in bold typeface are from Hannelie van Niekerk on behalf of the mayor:
“It is important to clarify that the percentages for the years mentioned were not tax increases, but instead changes in the budget – net of all revenues. The 10.2% quoted below is, again, not the tax increase for 2024, but the budget increase. The City’s impact on your overall 2024 tax bill was 4.99%, which were added on top of the Halton Region and Education contributions to total the overall 6.58%.”
As we all know the M-Municipal line on our “final” June 2024 tax bill went up 10.21%. My tax bill, and I’m sure yours as well, went up 7.07% in total after including the other increases (Halton Region and Halton Police and the Boards of Education).
Mayor Meed Ward in her City Hall office.
The Office of the Mayor has omitted the Halton Police tax increase so the information provided on the overall increase is simply wrong. In my opinion, there is a strong argument to say that calling a 10.21% budget increase a 4.99% tax impact involves some magical thinking. Of course, Hannelie did use the word “impact” and, according to the city’s integrity commissioner, that makes these statements ok.
“Every year, the Mayor does a line by line review of the suggested budget proposed by staff, to see where possible cuts or improvements can be made to the City’s portion of the final tax bill. In 2024, this brought the tax percentage down with 1%. For the 2024 budget, the Mayor and Council brought forward 62 proposed amendments to the budget – a culmination of cuts, neutral motions, and additions. A total of 27 were approved that brought the tax impact for the City portion of the property tax bill to the above mentioned 4.99%.”
I looked at the mayor’s budget as soon as it was released. I did the reverse calculations and determined the budget was increasing by 10.21%. I went on record and delegated on this subject on Nov. 2, 2023, Lori Jivan (Coordinator of Budgets and Policy) confirmed the 10.21% budget increase. The M-Municapl line on my June 2024 final tax bill, and other people’s bills, went up 10.21%. All of the voting our councillors did had no impact on the tax change but they did provide a wonderful show for us to watch on the live-stream.
“Finally, I wanted to mention that Burlington’s tax rate has been below the average increase, compared to municipalities in the area. Please visit this link to read more, click on the Staff Presentation link and refer to page 34 for more details.”
The link takes you to the mayor’s personal website. The chart shows tax rates for a bungalow from hand-picked communities.
“Below average increase” with emphasis on the word increase, the chart does not show increases but tax burdens. The paragraph is worded to give the impression that Burlington has below-average increases when in reality Burlington is increasing its budget by some of the largest percentages in Ontario.
“Regarding new staff: there were not 111 new hires. A number of these positions were existing positions that were vacant due to staff changes/promotions, etc. Only 30 new positions were funded in the budget, including new bylaw officers, transit drivers, community centre operators.”
Page 726 of the “2024 Financial Needs and Multi-Year Forecast” available on the city’s website, a document which some residents refer to as war and peace, shows 68 new full-time and 3.4 new part-time positions were added from 2022. Considering that the tax percentage started at 10.21% in the strong mayor’s budget document and ended at 10.21% on my tax bill, how are we expected to believe the number of hires was reduced? The 111 number comes from the “2025 financial needs and multi-year forecast” available on the city’s website that states:
“A significant risk to the corporation is the attraction and retention of talent and this reality has been a focus in 2024 where to date we have already hired 111 staff and currently have 57 unfilled vacancies.”
The data shown came from the City Finance department.
I know I have become a broken record, 10.21%, 10.21% – I remain stunned that the city can’t own up to its significant tax increases using plain language. I am bothered as well with the practice used in the Office of the Mayor that has staff passing along prepared statements.
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Using COB LOGIC our final tax bill that increased by 6.58% due to COBs 10.21% increase is only a budgeted increase.
A budget is a plan to spend x dollars over a given time frame. Should council see the error in planning to spend 10.21 % more in the next fiscal year. My guess is they will spend it all sooner than later. The response from COB headquarters is more spin than substance. Most managers, commissioners etc. usually spend all they have been budgeted in a given year fearing if they don’t next years budget will be cut back. If COB feels this is not the case, give us examples of the departments that underspent their budget last year.
Great article Eric. Please do keep exposing the actual numbers since we sure don’t seem to be getting them from the Mayor, the statements sent out by her staff, or council. As Lynn K. says, people need to be informed so that change can happen.
Anne: I too found it particularly galling seeing the big signs – I saw one on Guelph Line, one at Tansley Woofs where the city is having residents come to pay their tax bills, touting $500 for neighbourhood parties. It is completely irresponsible that this hasn’t been shelved – it feels like they deliberately like to rub our faces in the fact that they aren’t listening.
Eric thank you for taking my letter and its response from the city to the public (via the Burlington Gazette). And also for getting into the weeds with the actual facts and numbers. The more people know that we are being white-washed by the city the more a change can be effected at the next election. We need a fiscally responsible and truthful mayor and council.
Eric please, please, please, keep on sounding like a broken record with regard to the depth of the deceit in terms of our Burlington 10.21 tax increase. Some call it spin but it is not, it is plain, ugly, deceit and has no place in Municipal financial affairs.
Thank you Eric for correctly informing Burlington Tax Payers on the true Property Tax Increases. Information like this is crucial in order to fight our Mayor’s 2025 Tax Budget. Residents must get involved in this, as it’s our City!! And our money they are spending.
If our COB Council would just Stop all of their frivolous and unnecessary spending on Legacy Projects and granting free money to various organizations etc. etc. we as Tax Payers would be better off!!
Caren,. have you seen the huge City billboard outside Guelph Line Entrance to Central Park. Its advertising $500 City giveaways for neighorhoood parties. We don’t know about you but we don’t want my far too too high tax dollars going to fund neighborhood parties!!!!!!!!!
Editor’s note: The quote wasn’t mine but “Let them east cake” would appear to be appropriate
Editor I actually.considered using that quote LOL