Mayor Ted Clugston February 27, 2020 (photo courtesy Ross Lavigne)

By Chantal Wagner

Mayor's Reaction

Mayor not surprised with 2020 provincial budget

Feb 27, 2020 | 5:50 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB – When it comes to the 2020 provincial budget, there were some items Medicine Hat’s Mayor was not surprised about.

Mayor Ted Clugston expected that infrastructure funding through the Municipal Sustainability Initiative (MSI) to go down which will cost municipalities some stress and anguish.

“We’re aware they’re taking more of the fine revenue from municipalities which is about a $600-thousand hit for the City of Medicine Hat, that was announced in the previous budget. I’m assuming that’s continuing, but hopefully not getting even more or a larger hit.”

According to Clugston, that move alone is nearly a one per cent hit to city coffers.

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Clugston says he and a lot of other mayors and councils around the province are also bothered by the Payment in Lieu of Taxes.

As different levels of government can’t tax each other, the program was set up to compensate municipalities for lost property taxes. Last year’s budget saw the province cut that amount by 25 per cent with that being matched by another 25 per cent in this fiscal year.

“I’m trying to be supportive, I get the fact you can’t run deficits forever and this government has to make the changes and tough decisions. But there’s only one taxpayer in the province of Alberta.”

“But yet, if the provincial building started on fire the City of Medicine Hat would still be there with fire trucks or if there was a break-in our police would be there and all the services that we provide to everybody in the city, everyone is expected to pay their fair share.”

The city and municipalities will dive deeper into the numbers tomorrow with Alberta Urban Municipalities Association (AUMA).

“The city of Medicine Hat is probably more adept at managing these changes than maybe some other municipalities in the province,” Clugston said.