Saskatoon city council to consider potential cuts to address budget shortfall next week

Saskatoon's city councillors and mayor are set to get into the thick of budget shortfall discussions on Tuesday.

City administration will present reports outlining various options to lower the coming property tax hike, after an earlier report said the increase could be as much as 18 per cent if the city doesn't make some cuts. 

A revised report shows the 2024 shortfall isn't quite as hefty as originally anticipated. It is now calculated at $50.9 million, up from $52.4 million — meaning without cuts there would be a 17 per cent property tax increase.

"I must stress again, these early figures in no way represent any kind of finalized or even proposed property tax increases for residents and our business community,"  said Clae Hack, the city's chief financial officer.

Administration is highlighting seven areas where cuts can be made: transportation, the fire department, environmental health, community supports, taxation, land development, and arts and culture.

The police budget was also a topic of interest for some councillors at previous meetings, given the big chunk of the city budget that it takes up.

Administration also says that due to previous council resolutions, it will produce reports on the impacts of a citywide hiring freeze.

Council was originally supposed to hear options for the shortfall in the last special budget meeting in June, but after council took an hour and half to decide on the process they would use — then spending the remainder of the meeting debating a motion that eventually failed to pass — the main report was pushed to this upcoming July meeting.

Local businesses weigh-in

In a letter sent to the city, the Greater Saskatoon Chamber of Commerce recommended a seven per cent cut to all civic departments and city-funded agencies.

"A mandated cost-cutting initiative across all Civic Service Expenditures would deliver over $45 [million] in savings as a starting point for council's deliberations, giving council the opportunity to discuss further reductions and adjustments and make trade-offs between priorities," the chamber said in the letter.

The chamber suggests increasing cuts in some areas, while reducing in others — like frontline services or community safety.

Cuts require creativity, according to the chamber. 

"It's like trying to hit a bull's-eye from 30,000 feet," the letter said.

"Senior managers and their teams are closest to the board. Set the target and challenge them to hit it."