Vernon has an extra $1,554,204 from last year budget !

The NET surplus for 2006 is $1,554,204. I stress the word NET because this is the amount that will be sliced and diced by the Council into various 'flavour of the day' projects or formally put into Reserves to be used in the future. This figure above of $1,554,204 does NOT include more than $726,090 that were 'carried over' projects of 2006 to be completed in 2007 that were authorized by the previous Financial Manager. As well a further $3,135,975 had been authorized by council resolution in 2006 to be carried over to 2007. (Mostly the 25th ave construction deferred to spring of 2007).

Despite the fact that the originally estimated surplus was $700,000 and they used $230,600 of this for the OCP review the council refused to use any of the surplus to reduce residential class taxes when they decided to reduce business class taxes. (Residential taxes were increased from the original 2% forecast of $193,868 to $468,868 which is a 4.95% increase, while business taxes were decreased from the original 2% forecast of $100,608 to ($311,092 decrease) which is a 6.6% decrease.)

I hope that when the Council does their final slicing and dicing and their formal reserve account review which is long overdue they will consider using account # 246-201-024 which is a tax equalization reserve to place sufficient money from this windfall surplus to reduce the residential class taxes in 2008 by at least the amount by which they were increased (screwed) in 2007 !

IT IS TOO LATE TO ADJUST THE 2007 TAXES AS NOTICES HAVE GONE OUT BUT PUT ASIDE ENOUGH IN THE TAX EQUALIZATION RESERVE TO CORRECT IN 2008. (After all it is an Election year and individuals vote not businesses.)

QUESTION: What is a tax Equalization Reserve?
ANSWER: It is the taxpayer's equivalent of the Council Initiative Fund, Slush fund or the Mayor's "wiggle room" where the excess taxes or surpluses that had been collected from the year could be deposited. This fund which would benefit the taxpayers tax RATES has not been used since late 1984 when it was created to smooth out excessive rate increases in any one year.
The Council should commit to put the under budgeted building fees and others of the same ilk into this reserve each year to smooth out future taxes when revenues are more correctly forecast or even mis forecasted on the high side. The Council of the day can still remove these reserves and slice and dice them but the open audit trail would be more transparent and open to constructive public scrutiny.