Milton’s Town Council has approved its budget for 2022.
The final decision was made at Monday’s meeting. The 2022 budget has an investment of $123.7 million in capital projects and $164.1 million through the operating budget. In a release the Town says this is “to deliver programs and services to Milton’s growing community.”
The 2022 budget includes investment in:
- Customer service
- Modernization of services
- Sustainability – environmental and financial
- Community safety (fire services)
- Asset management
- Transit
- COVID-19 cost mitigation
“Milton is a vibrant community and Council’s vision is to realize a growing community with an exceptional quality of life,” says Councillor Mike Cluett, Milton’s 2022 Budget Chair. “As our community develops, so must the Town’s programs and services to accommodate community expectations with service demand, while balancing taxpayer affordability. Value for tax dollar is top of mind for Council as we make strategic investments in our programs and services.”
The 2022 capital portion of the budget represents a $123.7 million investment in 127 projects including new infrastructure to support the Town’s growth and expansion, as well as the rehabilitation and replacement of existing infrastructure.
The operating portion provides $164.1 million for the day-to-day operations at the Town that deliver important services to our community. It provides the funding to deliver services such as fire, snow clearing, maintenance of roads and parks, transit, Milton Public Library, stormwater pond maintenance, culture and recreation.
“The Town strives to identify sustainable new revenue streams,” says CAO Andrew Siltala, Town of Milton. “Significant efforts have been made this past year to attract and develop non-residential businesses, creating a more balanced commercial and industrial tax base, resulting in less pressure on our residential taxpayers.”
The Town is responsible for collecting property taxes that account for three agencies: Town of Milton, Halton Region, and the Province (school boards). Milton’s property tax bill is a combination of these three agencies. The Town of Milton’s services are only a portion (39%) of the overall tax bill. This combination (Halton Region, Town of Milton, school boards) is often referred to as the blended property tax rate and is what a taxpayer will see on their property tax bill and results in the household impact.
As a result of the 2022 approved budget, Milton’s portion of the property tax bill will increase by 5.47%, with an overall estimated blended rate of 2.93%. Therefore, the average overall household property tax bill will increase in 2022 by an estimated $19.99 per $100,000 of residential assessment.
A residential home in Milton assessed by the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation at $600,000 can expect to pay roughly a total of $4,219.95 in property taxes for 2022. In comparison to the other Halton region and bordering municipalities, Milton continues to be the lowest in residential property taxes.
View the 2022 budget and highlights here and learn more about the priorities outlined in Milton’s Council Staff Work Plan here.
