October 27, 2024 

Last Thursday, Council began its discussion of the City’s 2025-2029 Draft Financial Plan (2025 budget).

City staff has launched the Public Input Opportunity,  an invitation to provide feedback on the 2025 Draft Budget, with a deadline of November 17. I urge you to take advantage of this opportunity. Last summer, you may have participated in the survey of living conditions in Victoria conducted by IPSOS, a national polling firm. As useful as this survey was, it did not give Victorians an opportunity to comment on the City’s budget or programs funded by the City’s budget.

You can start by learning more about the budget by going to the City of Victoria’s “Have your Say” program which provides links to the Draft Financial Plan. 

You will see that the budgeting process is very complex. To start, as it stands, the budget projects a 12.17% increase in the City’s portion of Victoria property taxes for 2025. 

This 12.17% increase is an average increase, which includes a range of assessed residential, business/commercial and industrial properties. Non-ownership residential housing includes market rental apartments and below market rental housing including CRD and other social housing, BC Housing and other supportive housing, and shelter housing, all of which have low assessed values and therefore low tax levies.

The City Municipal property tax is only part of the property taxes home owners pay. Other components include School, CRD, BC Transit and other small levies. Looking at my personal 2024 Property Tax Notice, about 65% of the total is attributed to the municipality (City), 23% are BC School taxes, 7% goes to the CRD and 5% to BC Transit. Later this week, the CRD Board will decide the 2025 CRD levy.  Four members of Victoria Council sit on the CRD Board and the Mayor sits on the BC Transit Board.  Note that the VicPD budget falls within the City’s municipal budget. 

As you review the documents, please keep in mind that the Province’s responsibilities include housing and medical services.  The City’s primary responsibilities are City infrastructure, City owned structures, and public safety.

The budget may not be organized by programs or categories you are familiar with.  However, you are likely familiar, in a general way, with the priorities of the current Council. Do you believe Council’s priorities warrant the taxes you pay?

With any budget, and limited funding, there are trade-offs.  What are your recommendations?

As you consider programs or projects, as a guide, every $1.8M reduction in expenditures would lower the increase in the City’s portion of the budget by 1%

If you are happy, or not happy, with the budget priorities, you can make your views known in several ways. 

To ensure inclusion of your opinion in the City’s compilation of feedback, please send your submission to legislativeservices@victoria.ca. In addition to the Legislative Services email, you may wish to also send your submission to Councillors via Councillors@victoria.ca or to the Councillor liaison for your neighbourhood.    

In-person discussions are impactful. Opportunities at evening Council meetings are on the second Thursday of each month. 15 people may speak on topics of their choosing. Speakers on a specific topic must have distinct presentations. For the month of March only, an additional 20-24 people will be permitted to speak during a 2-hour period. You must register in advance here .

Staff will be providing a brief report on public submissions on December 5.  Motions for changes to the budget are to be concluded during the day on December 12.  The final Bylaw adoption will occur in late April, 2025.