The City of Saskatoonprojects an "unfavorable variance" of $6.8 million from the city's budget.
This is according to a report presented at the Saskatoon City Council meeting on Monday, said chief financial officer Clae Hack, who said the city is working in several areas. It made a profit, but it also incurred unexpected costs, he said.
"These positive gains were due to significantly higher-than-expected fuel prices, which impacted the city's budget, including utilities, by $3.5 million, and a $300 increase in snow and ice supplies. It was offset by $10,000 of unfavorable movement, which is longer than the line planned for the first half of 2022 due to the heavy snowfall in the first half of 2022," Hack said.
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He said various fines and penalties and other areas such as leisure centers failed to meet the budget.
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Also, $13.8 million from one-time COVID-19 funding supports the city's budget, It was also noted that only $10 will be received
Mayor Charlie Clark said other funds were still set aside as a cushion.
"We know we don't want to be overly dependent on this, but we have $6.5 million in financial stability reserves at this time," Clark said.
He added that the funding will allow the city to weather this difficult year a bit and that property taxes will not need to be raised to offset these overages.
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counts following below. Bev Dubois, concerned that in 2024 he will not have COVID-19 funding, asked Hack if it was still being discussed.
"In the next two-year budget cycle, he hasn't identified any one-time funding, so we'll review the budget a bit. Our COVID recovery, and what the impact will be." said Huck.
These discrepancies did not completely catch the city off guard, and it was noted that budget challenges were expected not just this year, but for years to come.
Another report on the city's budget, which he will release in November, said that structural deficit risks need to be addressed to prevent year-on-year budget deficits. says that there is
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