Saskatoon staring down a 4.96% tax hike in 2018

Saskatoon is still months away from another tax hike, but residents in the city are already getting a glimpse of what to expect. 

A new report shows the city's tax bump for 2018 is an estimated 4.96 per cent.

But that could change. The budget will be tabled in October and won't be finalized until early December. 

"We didn't want a surprise approach where we table a budget in October and no one has been informed of the pressures that we are facing, the projections or the inflation growth," said Clae Hack, the city's director of finance.

For the most part, those pressures are easy to forecast. The bulk of the $13 million budget bump is tied directly to inflation and locked-in wage increases. 

On the civic side, $5.8 million is tied to inflation while the police alone will spend $2.7 million on such increases. 

Other big ticket items include $1.2 million dedicated to snow and ice removal and $1.9 million for new green spaces and roadways in newer neighbourhoods. 

Provincial cuts hurt the city's budget

A big hit on the city's bottom line this year is cuts made by the province. 

Prior to this year's provincial budget, Crown corporations like SaskPower and SaskEnergy gave cities like Saskatoon an annual grant to make up for the fact that they don't pay property taxes on city land. 

But the government cut those grants and the city now faces a multimillion dollar shortfall.

The city says those cuts make up the bulk of the tax hike — about 2.77 per cent of it.

While there is a legal debate raging about the cuts, Hack says it's unlikely the issue will be resolved before councilors have to make a decision on the tax hike. 

The city will try to save cash by restructuring loans they took out to build sound retention walls, saving cash on unneeded road work and putting less money into reserves.

The budget debate will begin Oct. 16 and the budget is expected to be finalized by December.