HALTON HILLS, ON – At yesterday’s meeting, Council approved the 2023 budget for the Town of Halton Hills with a blended tax rate increase of 4.26% when combined with the tax changes at Halton Region (3.4%) and school boards (0%). The local Town tax increase is 6.62% including an increase of 1.83% for the special levy dedicated towards rising insurance costs and an increase of 0.6% for the infrastructure special levy.
For the average residential property in Halton Hills assessed at $623,500, residents can expect an overall increase of $217.40 in their 2023 property taxes.
Mayor Ann Lawlor noted that: “It has been a particularly challenging time, but I applaud our Council for their diligence in providing residents with a restrained tax increase while maintaining the services our community expects. Many of the financial pressures are beyond the control of the municipality such as the rising cost of insurance. This has necessitated the need for an insurance levy for the second year in a row. Similarly, the infrastructure levy provides continual investment in assets such as roads and facilities to keep them in a state of good repair.”
Key initiatives in the 2023 budget include:
Permanent delivery and enhancement of the ActiVan service pilot project providing transportation to the Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital
Implementing a new automated speed enforcement program
The addition of a new Fire Prevention Inspector and aerial ladder truck
The municipality’s annual cost of liability insurance premiums has grown by 196% or $1.4 million over a five-year period.
Chris Mills, Chief Administrative Officer noted that the 2023 budget reflects Council’s desire to minimize the tax impact to residents while maintaining core services. Mills outlined the challenges faced by the municipality which included a year of low assessment growth, rising insurance rates and inflation which has driven up the cost of doing business. “Many of the challenges faced by the Town are not unlike that of other municipalities”, he noted. “We are also in a period of uncertainty with legislated Provincial changes to our planning processes that will limit our ability to fund growth and are causing additional strain on our already limited resources.”
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