2025 Budget

A budget is the financial plan for the Township.  It lays out where the Township will spend money to provide services for our residents and businesses (roads, parks, fire, police etc.) and how we will meet Council’s goals and priorities.  It also shows where the money comes from (taxes, grants, user fees, debt etc.)  

The Township is required by provincial law to balance its budgets (revenues = expenses).

An operating budget is the spending plan for the day-to-day services that the Township provides including snow plowing, grass cutting, recreation programs, Council meetings and building inspections.  It includes things like wages & benefits, insurance, utilities, fuel, office supplies and debt repayment.

A capital budget is the spending plan to maintain or replace our existing assets or purchase new assets.  These assets include our roads, bridges, culverts, buildings, water systems, equipment and vehicles.  It also includes one-time expenses like the cost to complete a Development Charges Background Study or a Master Plan.

When creating the budgets each year staff look at every service and expense to see if there are things that can be eliminated, reduced or done more efficiently.  As the Township grows, there is a need to deliver our services to more and more residents and businesses which requires more resources.  All of these factors are considered when budgets are developed.

The Township has adopted a two-year budgeting model which allows for longer-term planning and alignment with Council’s priorities.

In year two of a two-year budget, minor changes can be made provided they are due to a new or changed regulation, a new Council direction or an unanticipated cost/revenue change.  Council must adopt the Township budgets each year according to provincial law.

The Township collects taxes to deliver our own services but also collects taxes on behalf of the School Boards and the County of Simcoe so they can deliver their services to our residents and businesses.

For every dollar of taxes the Township collects, 15.6 cents goes to the School Boards, 30.4 cents goes to the County of Simcoe and the Township keeps the remaining balance of 54 cents. 

The Township puts 22.6% of what we keep into our capital reserves and the remainder is used to provide services to our residents and businesses (12.2 cents – Township capital reserves; 41.8 cents – Township operating; 15.6 cents – School Boards; 30.4 cents – County of Simcoe)

Township reserves are like savings accounts for future spending.  Repairing, replacing and buying new assets are expensive and we need to save to do that over time.  It’s like saving to buy a new car or replace the roof on your house or adding an addition to your house.

FIR stands for Financial Information Return. Ontario municipalities are required to submit an annual FIR to the Ontario Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing. The FIR  is a standardized report of each municipality’s financial activities that groups services consistently across all municipalities for comparison purposes. The FIR categories can be found online.

General Government – Provision of Council services & meetings & elections; HR/Health & Safety; Financial & Asset Management; Accounting & Budget; Corporate Communications; Economic Development & Tourism; IT (Systems & Security); Insurance & Risk Management; Records Management & FOI; Accessibility.

Operations/Transportation – Maintenance and repairs of all Township roadways (asphalt & pothole repairs, bridge & culvert repair/replacement, snow removal, traffic signs, ditching, brushing & drainage).

Fire & Emergency Services – Provision of fire protection services including responses to fires, medical and ice/water rescue calls; code enforcement and inspections; public fire & life safety education and fire prevention.

Parks, Facilities & Recreation – Provision of recreation programs; library services; manages and operates municipal parks, trails, the arena/community centre, outdoor recreation facilities (tennis, soccer, baseball, ice rinks; boat launches); support for special events.

Building, Planning & Municipal Law - Receipt & processing of planning & development applications; development engineering; support for Conservation Authorities; building permits processing & inspections; enforcement of numerous regulations and by-laws including parking, property maintenance, noise, zoning, signs, animal control.

Policing  – The Ontario Provincial Police provides policing services for the residents and businesses of Oro-Medonte.

Environmental Services – Treatment & delivery of safe drinking water; urban storm pond facility management; communal tile systems; climate change initiatives/monitoring; streetlights.

The operating budget is divided as follows:

• General Government - 29%
• Operations/Transportation – 29%
• Fire & Emergency Services – 11%
• Parks, Facilities & Recreation – 8%
• Building, Planning & Municipal Law – 8%
• Policing – 12%
• Environmental Services – 3%

Just like you, the prices the Township has to pay for its goods and services continues to go up (utilities, insurance, fuel, supplies etc.). The Township is required by law to balance its budget (revenue = expenses). 

The Township hosts a survey that residents and businesses can complete to tell Township staff what they feel the priorities should be for the next year. This survey is open to the public from Monday, September 16th, 2024 until Monday, October 14th, 2024.