City Budget
2019 Tax & Rate Budget
2019 Budget Summary
2019 DISTRIBUTION OF TAX DOLLARS
Our Budget
This year’s Net Tax Supported Operating Budget of $887 million requires a 2.5% municipal property tax increase, which translates to $88 for the average residential property assessed at $358,600. Hamilton’s tax competitiveness has improved since 2011; residential property taxes are currently 6 per cent above the average of our municipal comparators, versus 11 per cent in 2011.
As part of this year’s 2019 Tax Supported Operating Budget, City departments have developed four-year (2019-2022) business plans that outline key priorities and milestones that support the City’s Strategic Plan and contribute to the City’s vision to be the best place to raise a child and age successfully.
In addition to property taxes, the City also receives revenues annually from user fees for recreation and transit, government grants and subsidies, license and permit fees, including revenue from the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG), which provided $5.3 million in revenue in 2018, helping to offset annual costs of delivering programs and services.
2019 Tax Supported Capital Budget Highlights
$227.1 million in gross capital spending includes:
- $75.8 million towards Roads, bridges, traffic, sidewalks
- $24.3 million towards Transit initiatives
- $20.9 million towards Roads growth
- $15.9 million towards Corporate and Recreation facilities
- $10.7 million towards Fire and Paramedic Services
- $10.0 million towards Central Fleet Vehicle replacement
- $8.3 million towards Open Space Development
- $8.2 million towards West Harbour Strategic initiatives
- $7.5 million towards Affordable Housing Initiatives
- $4.5 million towards Forestry and Horticulture
- $3.7 million towards Waste Management initiatives
- $2.8 million towards Entertainment facility rehabilitation
- $2.6 million towards Parks and Cemeteries
- $2.4 million towards Information Technology
Community Engagement & Participation
- $6.12 million for 2019 to be allocated for community programming through the City Enrichment Fund
- Continue to implement the Customer Service Strategy
- Enable Open Data capabilities and processes to support the Citizen Dashboard
- Continued focus on Open Data and our Smart City Strategy
Economic Prosperity & Growth
- Action taken by Council to date has once again seen the City surpass $1billion worth of building permit construction value in 2018
- This marks the seventh year in a row where building permit construction value has exceeded $1Billion
- $8.2 million towards West Harbour Strategic initiatives
- $8.3 million towards Open Space Development
- Transit & Transportation
- $24.3 million towards Transit initiatives including upgrades and repairs to 350 transit shelters and 18 replacement HSR buses
- $1.8 million to support 10-year transit strategy plan to provide 39,000 additional service hours and 30 full time equivalents
- $4.3 million towards DARTS with planned additional trips of 67,000 to support increased ridership intake and AODA requirements
Healthy & Safe Communities
- $99.5 million towards affordable housing and homelessness programs including emergency shelters, supportive housing, new affordable housing construction, repairs to social housing and eviction prevention programs.
- $10.74 million towards Fire and Paramedic equipment and vehicle replacements
- $1.6 million (gross) for an additional ambulance and 10 new paramedics
- $1.4 million in renovations to the City’s two long term care facilities
- Funding for Childcare expansion in Riverdale Neighbourhood and for Indigenous families
- Funding for reduced childcare fees across the city
- Launch of the City’s first Urban Indigenous Strategy
- Development of a city-wide Drug & Opioid Strategy focusing on the pillars of prevention, harm reduction, treatment, and enforcement
Clean & Green
- $3.7 million towards Waste Management initiatives
- $4.5 million towards Forestry and Horticulture
- $600,000 in energy savings thanks to converting 10,000 high pressure sodium street lights to energy efficient LED lights
Built Environment & Infrastructure
- $75.8 million towards Roads, bridges, traffic, sidewalks rehabilitation
- $20.9 million towards Roads growth
- $2.8 million towards Entertainment facility rehabilitation
Culture & Diversity
- Delivery of Transgender Protocol training to employees
- $15.3 million towards corporate and recreation facilities rehabilitation
- $600,000 to support the staffing for the new $25 million Bernie Morelli Recreation Centre
- A continued focus on ensuring growth in the culture and creative sectors, including museum visits and film permits
Our People & Performance
- Development and implementation of an IT Strategy
- Continuous improvement with the City’s Performance Excellence Dashboard with emphasis on the use of Results Based Accountability framework for performance measurement
- Enhancement of Multi-Year Business Planning and Budget Processes
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