PERTH COUNTY - Perth County council took their first look at their 2012 budget Thursday, with an 11.5 per cent increase being reviewed.
Renato Pullia, director of corporate services and treasurer, delivered the 2012 budget package at the Jan. 12 meeting of council, explaining that this year’s budget is the first year for a new cost-sharing formula with Stratford.
“It’s a bit of a different year, in that it’s the first year in which cost sharing arrangements between the municipalities is taking effect,” he said. “That’s having the effect of some cost shifting towards one party or another.”
The cost-sharing agreement was signed in 2010 and is designed to divvy up social services, EMS, Spruce Lodge Long-term Care Home in Stratford. Although the formula is designed to include St. Marys, they haven’t signed the agreement yet, which Coun. Walter Mackenzie questioned.
“In order for this to work, we need to have all the players then and we don’t,” Mackenzie said.
Pullia said budget pressures for 2012 include the cost of salaries and benefits at $562,718, OMERS pension benefit plan at $114,463, and $125,297 in fuel.
“There are a lot of little things, but some of the big things just jump out,” Pullia said.
Perth County has seen an average county levy increase of 1.77 per cent since 2000. The 2012 budget includes 34 planned projects in the capital budget amounting to $9.11 million, up from $8.43 million last year.
The first budget meeting will be held on Jan. 19, and Pullia said the budget process will continue over the next two to three months. Warden Ian Forrest said he was surprised by the initial numbers, and looks forward to bringing the levy increase down.
“The percentages that Renato showed us this morning were a little bigger than I had anticipated,” Forrest said. “Hopefully those can be adjusted a little bit but on the other hand staff has done a really thorough job getting it ready and those may be the numbers that we face.”