$107M surplus, some family-oriented programs trimmed

Oil shock has hit the Saskatchewan budget, prompting the government to look for money elsewhere and trim back some well-liked family subsidies.

Finance Minister Ken Krawetz's $14-billion budget for the fiscal year that begins April 1, released Wednesday, was balanced (actually, a $107 million surplus) and taxes weren't increased, but any frills were few and far between.

Instead, there were lots of little cuts to programs and services, such as $700,000 to a small business loan program.

Fewer to qualify for active families benefit

Among the more significant cuts were to three programs that help families — the subsidies still exist, only in slimmed-down form.

The active families benefit, which provides a subsidy for parents who have their children enrolled in sports and arts programs, will now be available to 25,000 fewer families because only those with total incomes under $60,000 can claim it. 

As well, some 6,000 seniors will become ineligible for the seniors' drug plan — which capped drug costs at $20 a prescription — because the income threshold is being lowered to about $65,000 from about $80,000.

A program to supplement the incomes of low-income working families is also being reduced by limiting the subsidy to families with children under 12. That will cut $1 million and affect about 500 families. 

People paying off their student loans will not be getting cheques in the mail any more. The graduate retention program still exists, but now rebates can only reduce taxes, not provide a cash benefit.

Oil revenues down, potash up

Oil money is projected to be down $660 million compared to the last budget.

Counteracting that is an expected $400 million increase in potash revenue, partially due to a rejig of the tax rules.

There's a big jump in projected income this year from Crown corporations and other government business enterprises — $905 million compared to $688 million the year before.

Big ticket ministries get an increase

On the spending side, spending is going up in the big-ticket health, education and social service ministries by 1.9 per cent. The rest of government departments will see spending trimmed by 0.6 per cent.

A significant change this year is that the government plans to borrow $700 million for infrastructure (roads, schools and hospitals). Officials say it makes sense with interest rates as low as they are.

Possibly a pre-election budget

Absent from the financial plan are any increases to so-called sin taxes — tobacco and alcohol.

Krawetz's budget may be the last before a provincial election. If the election is in the fall, it's the last.

If a fall federal election pushes the provincial election into the spring, there could possibly be one more budget. 

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