At its regular meeting of March 27, 2023, Stratford City Council approved the 2023 budget by-law, which is an estimate of the revenue and expenses for the upcoming year.
The 2023 budget reflects an overall municipal tax levy increase of 6.97%. The tax levy is the amount of money the City requires from taxpayers to fund the programs and services it offers.
This year, the total tax levy is $73 million, which is the difference between the City's estimated operating expenses of $141 million and its estimated revenues of $68 million.
Please note that the tax levy increase is not the same as the increase in a property owner's taxes. There are a number of factors that will determine the amount of property taxes someone pays, including the current assessed value of the property, as well as the specific tax rates (local and education) for that property class.
In other words, a tax levy increase of 6.97% does not mean your taxes will increase by 6.97% this year. Some property taxes will increase, and some will decrease depending on the property tax classification and assessment values relative to other properties.
For the average residential homeowner with a property valued at $350,000 (based on the 2016 assessment), this year's tax levy increase represents roughly an additional $234 annually, which will appear on the final tax bills to be issued in June.
If you have any questions regarding your tax bill, please contact our office at 519-271-0250 extension 5212 and we would be happy to provide additional information, specific to your property.
| 2023 Draft Budget |
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The draft 2023 budget documents can be reviewed as follows: |
| 2023 Budget Meetings |
March 7, 2023The Finance and Labour Relations Committee met on March 7, 2023, to continue its budget deliberations. You can view the Treasurer's Update presentation from this meeting, or see the agenda materials in the Council Calendar. February 21, 2023The Finance and Labour Relations Committee met on February 21, 2023, to continue its budget deliberations. You can view the Treasurer's Update presentation from this meeting, or see the agenda materials in the Council Calendar. Here is the video recording of the February 21 budget session. February 7, 2023The Finance and Labour Relations Committee met on February 7, 2023, to continue its budget deliberations. You can view the Treasurer's Update presentation from this meeting, or see the agenda materials in the Council Calendar. Here is the video recording of the February 7 budget session. January 24, 2023The Finance and Labour Relations Committee met on January 24, 2023, to continue its budget deliberations. You can view the Treasurer's Update presentation from this meeting, or see the agenda materials in the Council Calendar. The following presentations were also provided to the Committee at this meeting:
Here is a video recording of the January 24 session:
January 10, 2023The Finance and Labour Relations Committee met on January 10, 2023, to begin its budget deliberations. You can view the Treasurer's Introduction and Overview presentation from this meeting, or see the agenda materials in the Council Calendar. Here is a video recording of the January 10 session:
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Municipal Budgeting Education Session
An education and training session on municipal budgeting processes and procedures for members of Council was held on Tuesday November 29, 2022.
2023 Community Grant Program
Please see a list of the 2023 grant recipients, and review the City Policy F.1.1 Community Grant Program for more information.
If your organization has received a 2023 community grant, your year-end reporting must be submitted by January 15, 2024. Please contact Corporate Services for further information.