By Rosalind Russell – Espanola council has met a couple of time over the last few weeks to discuss the municipal budget for 2026 and are ready to approve the final draft.
As part of these deliberations, earlier this month, council directed staff to implement reductions of around 0.5% from the first draft.
Council further directed staff to return tomorrow, December 16th with the budget bylaw, which is to include an approximate levy increase of 4.6%.
Of this increase, only approximately 0.42% stems from municipal operations within the town’s control.
The remaining 4.18% is due to increases in services outside of municipal control, such as police, public health, social services, utilities, and insurance costs.
The impact to the average household is expected to be approximately an extra $145 for the year.
Minimal increases in municipal operating costs are attributable to additional revenues and cost saving measures implemented across all municipal departments.
Photo: The 2025 Levy Pie shows the break-down in each department, but keep in mind, there are increases in police, public health, social services and more in the 2026 budget, which is expected to be passed tomorrow evening. Screenshot by Rosalind M Russell
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