Richard Rolke - Vernon Morning Star Published: January 07, 2010 6:00 PM
Vernonites are being urged to get informed about the city’s budget and how it impacts them. Public meetings regarding the 2010 budget will be held Wednesday and Jan. 15 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:40 p.m. at city hall, with public input provided at 11:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. “I hope people will come out and speak,” said Coun. Bob Spiers, a member of the finance committee. “They may bring good ideas to the table on how to reduce it.” Coun. Patrick Nicol, who also sits on the finance committee, is encouraging residents to take the budget process seriously. “Every decision that has a financial impact matters to everyone,” he said. “Last year, we got a lot of great ideas from the public.” A copy of the proposed budget can be found at www.vernon.ca/services/finance/financial_plan.html, and Spiers insists anyone attending the meetings should do their homework first.
“Look at the plan. If you don’t read it, you don’t have the right to complain about what’s in it,” he said. Council has still not determined if there will be a tax increase in 2010, but Spiers already has a preferred direction. “I think it should be zero per cent or less given the economy,” he said. “We have to re-examine everything line by line. There may be things we can take out of the budget.” Nicol also agrees, saying the city’s priority must be some key infrastructure projects and essential services like police. “It shouldn’t be very difficult to keep it to zero,” he said. “It should be a realistic budget for this time.”
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