FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY
Here is a quote from the recent report to Council by MunicipalVU consultants which we commissioned to assess what services we should be proving and how, as well as what organizational structure is best suited to delivierng those services.
“The County is carrying more services and assets than it can afford. Prince Edward County is a unique municipality with a broad and complex service mandate. The municipality delivers services across a geographically large rural area with multiple settlement communities, (small population/tax base), aging infrastructure, significant tourism pressures, and growing community expectations.”
In other words we are trying to do too much with revenue we have.
Here I borrow from Ernie Margetson's work to indicate what our priorities should be for the next Council:
--Work to develop a long-range financial plan to ensure that capital and operating decisions allow for necessary investments, maintenance of healthy financial reserves, and enable asset renewal and maintenance planning. This would reverse the trend and risk of short-term decisions that focus disproportionally on minimizing annual tax increases.
--Review municipal services to clearly distinguish those required as legislative requirements, including infrastructure, such as roads, bridges and sidewalks, or discretionary categories, such as grant requests and affordable housing, to ensure the services delivered are financially sustainable.
--Develop and implement a sustainable service delivery model that includes rationalization of services and realization of actual operation efficiencies.
--Seek new and expanded revenue opportunities to offset demands on tax increases. Review Municipal Accommodation Tax (MAT) rate to better offset infrastructure costs associated with tourism. Advocate for adjustment of MAT funds to increase allocation to municipal finances versus marketing. Focus on other fund opportunities such as grants or strategic partnerships such as public private partnerships.
--Review the relationship between service cost and revenue streams to ensure that fees are consistently applied across departments and services (e.g. recreation fees, facility rentals, waste management fees). User fees and charges need to be tied to actual service costs, to ensure the user pay principle is respected.
--Ensure the County’s asset planning strategy is operating within a sustainable long-range financial plan.
We have anew and highly qualified Director of Finance in Arryn McNicol and Council needs to seek and follow his recommendations.
At the same time, our new CAO, Adam Goheen is undertaking a review of organizational structure, levels and reporting responsibilities which I am sure will result in better efficiency and cost saving.