City council will start with a three-per-cent tax increase when it sits down Wednesday afternoon to begin discussing the 2016 Prince George budget.
The city's operating budget was increased by 2.5 per cent in 2014 and 2015.
Driving the bulk of the proposed increase for a $131.8 million operating budget is a nearly $3.1 million boost to the general tax levy, which staff said is required to maintain service levels and contract commitments.
There are also proposed increases of $700,000 to the snow control budget, $18,258 to the road rehab budget and and a $965,158 boost to the general infrastructure reinvestment fund.
Staff have counted the elimination of the nearly $2.1 million Canada Winter Games levy, which was introduced in 2011, as a decrease to the overall levy, bringing the net increase to three per cent instead of the gross 5.32 per cent.
The recommended increase to the snow control budget is a recurring feature in city budget documents.
With the city consistently overspending on clearing snow every year, there is no money in its dedicated reserve fund, meaning the excess costs have to be covered by the general surplus.
A request to increase the 2014 snow removal budget to $6 million was met with hesitation by council and a $5.8 million budget was approved. Council agreed to the 2015 recommendation of increasing the budget to $6.3 million, but with $4.6 million already spent, staff are projecting going over budget by about $600,000 by the year's end.
Staff have asked for a $7 million snow budget for 2016, and are forecasting additional increases over the following two years to reach a $7.3 million annual investment to allow for the creation of a reserve fund that is equal to 25 per cent of the annual expenses.
The suggested 1.07 per cent hike to the general infrastructure reinvestment fund in 2016 is meant to start covering the cost of fleet expenses. This year, council put a little more than $1.5 million in the fund, but a 2013 calculation pointed to a required annual investment of $3.74 million to keep up the city's vehicles.
Staff have recommended the $965,158 increase in 2016, a $1 million increase in 2017 and another increase in 2018 to "achieve a figure that would allow the city to purchase its fleet outright and curb the city's dependence on debt for this recurring expense."
As presented to the finance and audit committee at the beginning of November, to reach a 2.5 per cent levy increase, $450,000 worth of work would have to be cut from the capital projects list. Another $450,000 would have to be cut if council wanted to hit a two-per-cent levy increase target.
The first of two meetings dedicated to next year's budget, Wednesday's sit-down in council chambers will be completed in two sections - the first beginning at 3 p.m. and the second at 6 p.m. Each session will begin with a 15-minute period for members of the public to address council with their feedback.
Budgets scheduled to be approved Wednesday include police and fire protection, bylaw enforcement, economic development, Tourism Prince George, the Prince George Public Library and the office of the city manager.
The remainder of the operating budget items and the capital plan will be deliberated on Dec. 2.
