2022 Budget Approved

Following a series of presentations of the Draft 2022 Financial Plan and a report on public comments received, Council adopted the plan at the final budget meeting on April 19, 2022 with no significant changes.

The 2022 budget provides the level of service expected by the community while recognizing today’s financial realities for a local government, and it is comparable with prior years’ budgets.

Like most municipalities, businesses and homes, desired improvements in the District outweigh the financial capabilities of a small-town, rural community. We are also not alone in entering an era where we must address aging infrastructure. We are in the sixth year of a 15-year plan to increase the amount we put away each year to respond to future infrastructure costs.

At the same time, the District is investing in the community vision for the future, based on Council’s Strategic Plan, the last Citizen Survey and past engagements on the District’s budget. Both the Resilient Asset Management Plan and Active Transportation Plan are key priorities factored into budget decisions, as well.

In 2022, measured increases account for non-discretionary increases, such as inflation, construction cost escalation, wage and benefit increases, Capital Regional District bulk water costs, and the needs of emergency services. The average Central Saanich property tax increased 4.84% to the average family home (average home has assessed value of $966,700), which is approximately $9 a month.

As the impact of COVID-19 hit global economies, investment returns were less than expected; however this year we are fortunate to be able to absorb the impact thanks to the provincial-federal COVID Restart Grant.

The 2022 budget is balanced at $34.4 million.