Saskatoon, among other municipalities across Saskatchewan, is feeling the crunch of budget time with raised property taxes. A report from the city suggests some of the blame for the increases is due to the federal and provincial governments downloading costs.
While the province insists support is at record levels, some local leaders argue it’s still not keeping pace with the costs pushed their way.
Saskatoon’s budget overview included a report on provincial or federal government downloading to the City of Saskatoon.
The report states that recent direct downloading and indirect downloading via cuts to vital social programs has resulted in “unreasonable financial burdens.”
“What we’re hearing from municipalities right across our province is downloading is impacting each and every one of them,” says Saskatchewan’s Urban Municipalities Association president Randy Goulden.
Saskatoon and Regina — Saskatchewan’s two biggest cities — are going through the budget process, and both will see increased property taxes. Regina is facing a potential increase of more than 15 per cent.”
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Some outreach services say they are feeling the impacts of funding shortages and are relying more on donations to keep up with increasing demand.
“Those costs are trickling down in more ways than just municipality, they are trickling down to individuals,” says executive director of Saskatoon Indian and Metis Friendship Centre Michelle King.
The NDP is accusing the government of Saskatchewan of shoving off responsibilities, causing the increases.
“Costs for taxpayers keep going up and our services keep getting worse. We are getting the worst of both worlds because of Sask. party downloading,” said Municipal Affairs Critic Erika Ritchie.
In response, the provincial government pointed to recent funding, stating it has allocated a record $230.5 million, with $66.49 million going to the City of Saskatoon, through the Municipal Revenue Sharing this year.
The province also said it has invested more than $98 million in homelessness services since 2023 and made an additional investment of $20 million over three years to expand those services this year.
“We are interested in additional insights from Saskatoon’s recent pit count report to better understand individual circumstances,” stated the province.
Saskatoon Mayor Cynthia Block has said even if there were no property tax increase, cities may need to adopt a funding model going forward, including more money from the federal government.
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