Surrey council approves budget, 12.5% property tax increase

Some Surrey residents will see their property taxes climb by 12.5 per cent after city council approved its budget on Monday evening.

A large portion of the increase is related to the cost of the mayor’s pledge to scrap a transition to a municipal police force.

Councillors Linda Annis and Mandeep Nagra opposed the budget, arguing record inflation is already posing financial challenges.

“For this reason and for just looking at what businesses and residents can afford, I will not be supporting any of the budget items,” Annis said during the meeting.

In February, Mayor Brenda Locke announced a 17.5 per cent tax increase. It was lowered by five per cent in March, after the city received $90 million from the province.

Locke said that money will support capital improvements and reduce the policing surcharge from the proposed 9.5 per cent to 4.5 per cent. The business community argues the money from the province was meant for infrastructure—not operating expenses.

“Really ensuring that the potholes in our roads, those are fixed, you know, other types of infrastructure investments to really increase the tax base and sustainability of our city. It wasn't meant to pay for an offset cost for a policing decision from the past,” said Anita Huberman, the president of the Surrey Board of Trade.

The current budget is contingent on the move back to the RCMP. The province is still in the process of making its decision on the city’s proposal to stop the transition to the Surrey Police Service. Solicitor General Mike Farnworth is expected to make a decision early next month, before tax notices are issued.

“The initial plan to transition to the Surrey Police Service – that took an initial 18 months. We received the information from the city of Surrey just before Christmas, and the ministry staff have been working expeditiously on that,” Farnworth said.

Supporting both police forces is costing $8 million a month, according to the city’s finance department.

Locke concluded Monday’s discussion about the budget by stating that now that it has been passed, council can work on resolving the city’s policing issue.

A vote for the budget’s final adoption will take place on April 17, at the next council meeting.

 

With files from CTV Vancouver's Lauren Pullen and Regan Hasegawa