Don Quixote Budget Rant

Apparently some of the Media has received the Green Budget Sheets. While important these are only the operating expense side of the budget. These sheets do not include the capital spending, the revenue side of the budget or the Reserves and the activity within the reserves in 2006 or planned for 2007.

In the past the City has been famous for producing a Paul Martin type budget where revenues are understated and expenses are overstated. It is important that the revenue projections are examined and the reserve draw downs are analysed and the capital spending is scrutinized to ensure that little "wiggle room", "slush funds" or council initiative funds are not created so the treasurer can produce money as if by magic to satisfy the council project of the day.

It took several years of bitching and complaining to have a formalized policing reserve set up (2006 starting balance $1,493,000) and it is important that this reserve be detailed to the public so we can see that the expenditures and allocations made from this reserve are justified. It is also important that this reserve be used to smooth out yearly policing costs and the draw downs for this purpose are maximized. This reserve should never grow to the point where it just becomes another "slush fund" to be raided when some council member comes up with a new idea.

The RCMP contract calls for 53 officers and the financial plan budgets for 49 because traditionally the RCMP has never been able to fully staff its authorized manpower. In fact in 2006 the RCMP level has averaged around 44. (5 under budget or 9 under authorized.) If an RCMP officer cost $120,000 per year (salary and overhead - a conservative calculation ) then our 2006 starting balance of $1,493,000 would allow us 12.44 RCMP officers of "wiggle room". As we have budgeted for 49 positions in 2007 we have more than 2 years of cushion in this fund (2.48 years) in case the RCMP can hire the required bodies to come up to full strength.

This is also before the savings from the 2006 budget, the RCMP contract upward billings and the decision to remove $311,409 from this reserve for five new bylaw enforcement officers -( two full-time and three-part time). Even with these uses I predict the fund will go up and be in excess of $1,600,000 when finally calculated at year end.

I do not know yet what the Treasurer has recommended this reserve be drawn down to for the purposes of reducing taxable Policing costs but it should be a minimum of $600,000 used to reduce this reserve to a balance of $1,000,000 or 7.142 officers worth of wiggle room. If he has recommended no draw down then $600,000 represents 4.19% potential property tax reduction.