The City has officially adopted its 2024 to 2026 multi-year operating, rate (water and wastewater, parking) and capital budgets as of February 2, 2024.

City council approved a multi-year budget policy in 2022 that will see a focus on a three-year budget cycle rather than a one-year cycle. The transition will start this year for the budget years 2024 to 2026.

More information about the multi-year budget process and the benefits of a multi-year budget can be found in the Multi-Year Budget Policy.

Please continue reading to learn more about the budget process, and feel free to ask a question or provide your input via the question-and-answer tool below.

Engaging with You

Telephone Town Hall - 2024 Events Information Coming Soon

What is a Telephone Town Hall?

A telephone town hall provides residents an opportunity to give feedback and learn more about the subject at hand all from the comfort of their home. It is similar to a radio call-in show, except instead of individuals calling in, the City calls residents.

Listen to the Telephone Town Hall that took place on Nov. 29, 2023:

Open Houses

The Budget Standing Committee and City staff connected with residents on the latest budget for St. Catharines at two open houses held on Nov. 28 and 30, 2023. Please stay tuned for more information on the 2024 events.

Pop-up Kiosks

Throughout December 2023, City staff hosted five interactive budget sessions at kiosks across the city to give residents a chance to meet the budget team, ask questions and provide feedback on the 2024-2026 Multi-Year Budget, as well as learn more about the budget process. Please stay tuned for more information on the 2024 events.

2024-26 Council Budget Meetings and Resources

Watch: Council (Budget) Meeting - Jan 22, 2024

Watch: Council (Budget) Meeting - Jan. 10, 2024

Presentations:

Watch: Council (Budget) Meeting - Nov. 22, 2023

Watch: Council (Budget) Meeting - Nov. 1, 2023

Watch Live meetings: youtube.com/CityStCatharines

Live feeds for meetings become active a few minutes before the scheduled start time of the meeting.

Budget Basics

The annual budget for the City of St. Catharines can be a lot to unpack for anyone. So, before diving in, let’s review all that is involved in our annual budget process.

Watch this short video on how the budget works:

Capital vs. Operating

There are two primary budgets prepared by staff and voted on by Council: the Capital and Operating Budgets.

Capital Budget:

This budget pertains to large-scale investments in tangible amenities, facilities and infrastructure. Funding for the Capital Budget is drawn in part from tax revenues, alongside money drawn from reserves, debentures and other funding sources such as grants from federal and provincial governments.

Examples of Capital Budget items:

• Road resurfacing and replacement
• New buildings
• Major upgrades or renewal of facilities
• Construction of parks and amenities

Operating Budget:

The Operating Budget covers the day-to-day operations of the City, things like staff salaries, materials for repairs, electricity to keep the lights on, programs and more. This budget is primarily funded by the City’s portion of municipal property tax bills and revenues collected through City services and programs. It is the operating budget, as approved by Council, that sets the City tax rate.

Examples of operating budget items:

• Salaries and bene
• Recreation programs
• Facility maintenance
• Administrative services
• Utilities and materials

Rate Supported Budgets:

There are two rather unique budgets separate from the operating and capital budgets. These are parking and water / wastewater. Both budgets, including their operating and capital costs, are covered directly by revenues generated through their related services.

In the Parking Budget, infrastructure and operations for paid parking are financed by the rates collected through paid parking and parking tickets.

The Water / Wastewater Budget funds the City’s water delivery and wastewater (sewer) systems through revenues generated by water / wastewater bills.

Service Levels and Asset Management

The City does regular reviews of service levels and asset management to utilize City resources efficiently.

Taxes: A Three-Way Split

Property taxes as a whole are made up of three individual pieces: the City portion, the Region portion, and the Province’s education portion.

The City portion, which pays for City of St. Catharines operations, services and assets, is dependent on the amount approved by Council in the operating budget. The more spent on the operating budget the higher the City portion of the finalized tax rate.

The Region portion pays for Niagara Region operations, services and assets such as Public Health, waste management, police, regional roads, and the new Niagara Region Transit System. The Region’s tax rate is dependent on the budgetary deliberations of Regional Council.

The education portion is set and administered by the Province of Ontario, and helps to pay for public education.

MPAC Property Assessment

The Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC) collects data about properties across Ontario and is responsible for annual property assessments.

The following video explains how the assessment works:

For more information on property assessment, including how various properties are assessed, current calculations, and other FAQ, visit: Municipal Sector Resources | MPAC

The Finalized Rate:

Once all three levels of government have set their rates, they are combined into one finalized rate. That rate is then calculated against the assessed value of a home or property to generate a total of taxes owed on the property for the year.

Once the amount owed has been calculated, the City of St. Catharines administers billings and collections for all properties within its borders. Taxes are collected by the City and then divided between the City, Region and Province.

For more information on taxes, including information on where taxes go, and how they are calculated, visit stcatharines.ca/Taxes.