Tweed council is expected to pass its 2024 budget Wednesday night.
The proposed budget being presented to the public at a special meeting at 5 o’clock shows a 17.8 per cent tax increase.
As high as that number might seem, Tweed council began budget discussions a while ago looking at an increase as high as 41 per cent.
If the budget is passed as presented, the average tax paid per household would go from $1,521 a year up to $1,791
That would still be about $500 a year lower than the average tax per household in similar municipalities such as Stirling-Rawdon and Centre Hastings.
Put another way, municipal taxes would go up $121 for each $100,000 of a property’s assessed value. A home valued at $300,000 would see local taxes go up by about $360.
Staff say that between 2004 and 2024 operating expenses increased from $3.44 million to over $8.8 million but property taxes only increased to cover 63% of operating costs.
The mayor of Tweed, Don DeGenova, has told Quinte News that council has been forced to play catch up because councils in past years did not increase taxes enough to cover costs.
