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Have your say on City spending with new online tool

City of Wetaskiwin launches online citizen budget tool
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How would you like the City of Wetaskiwin to spend its money in the coming year? The City’s new Citizen Budget Tool allows you to share your thoughts on how tax dollars should be spent.

What would you like the City of Wetaskiwin to spend its money on in the coming year?

Where do you think spending might be cut back?

Now, it’s even easier for you to provide feedback!

Citizen Budget Tool launched

The City of Wetaskiwin has launched its Citizen Budget Tool, which allows community members to share their thoughts on how tax dollars should be spent.

Why?

Each annual budget must realistically address both the challenges and the opportunities faced by the City and community, balancing the need to provide and sustain essential services with the ability to provide nice-to-have programs and services.

Councillors will consider the community’s priorities as they allocate limited resources for maximum effect.

How the tool works

In the first section of the online tool, participants are asked to decide how they would distribute $1,000 in tax dollars, between service areas such as recreation, public works and protective services. Community members can also leave service areas unfunded to indicate a preference for no spending.

In the second section, participants are asked to rate projects being proposed in the 2020 capital budget from highest to lowest priority.

A general feedback form follows in the third section of the budget tool.

Your feedback is important

“City council makes decisions on the municipal budget largely based on community feedback,” says Mayor Tyler Gandam.

“We are always striving to make it easier for the public to participate in the municipal budget process and this new online tool is one more component of that.”

The items covered in the 2020 budget tool are discretionary, which means the City can increase, maintain or decrease the levels of service. Other items, such as water and wastewater utilities – are legislated by higher orders of government and the City must ensure that all regulations are adhered to, leaving less ability to adjust service levels.

The Citizen Budget will be available online until midnight on Sept. 30. City staff will then compile the feedback received and present it to City Council for review.

Access this online tool at wetaskiwin.citizenbudget.com or through the City’s website.