Dear Editor,
The provincial government is balancing its budget by cutting spending, which will inevitably affect our City's grants and income. This reduction in income from the province does not give the City a green light to make up that shortfall by raising our taxes.
City and council have shown no desire to curb spending over the past years and it is time they started. Where should they cut?
City employees make an average of more than $100,000 per year, with an estimated increase of 35 employees in 2020. If the City adopts a hiring freeze, we will save $3.5M this year, and they could ask each department to cut expenses by 10 per cent – in other words, stop spending.
Welcome to the real world, where companies are closing their doors throughout the province and in Airdrie, as well. It is sad to see this happen, but the City is not immune to the fiscal realities in the province, and council and administration need to act accordingly and have a zero increase in taxes for 2020.
Bill Crawford
Bayside
