Torontonians will know extra immediately concerning the potential taxes and charges accessible to metropolis council in its quest to deal with its monetary challenges.
In February, former mayor John Tory requested metropolis employees to review an array of recent taxes and charges to assist handle the metropolis’s funds. He’d hoped the research might assist the town sort out annual deficits made worse by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Town says it’ll maintain a media briefing this morning with metropolis supervisor Paul Johnson and interim chief monetary officer Stephen Conforti on its up to date long-term monetary plan. The briefing is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. ET.
Mayor Olivia Chow is predicted to talk to media an hour later.
Based on the town, its government committee will think about the plan and employees suggestions at a particular assembly on Aug. 24.
Chow — who took workplace on July 12 after profitable the June 26 mayoral byelection — has stated the Metropolis of Toronto faces a close to billion-dollar price range shortfall this 12 months, and has known as on each the federal and provincial governments for assist.
Ottawa rejects Chow’s ask for extra assist
However in late July, Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland rejected Chow’s request for tons of of tens of millions of {dollars} in monetary assist.
In a July 24 letter, Freeland stated the federal authorities has contributed greater than $6 billion to the town because the Liberals had been elected in 2015. If additional assist is required, Toronto ought to both pull cash from its reserve accounts or strategy Premier Doug Ford’s provincial authorities, Freeland stated.
The province has signalled a willingness to associate with the town.
On the time that Tory made the request to metropolis employees, he estimated the town’s spending hole amounted to greater than $1.5 billion associated to prices from 2022 and 2023. He blamed the town’s “COVID hangover” for a lot of the issue and stated Ottawa and the province should handle it.
Tory had lengthy maintained that Toronto’s essential income — property taxes — can’t fund all packages and companies. Additionally they can’t hold tempo with the town’s crumbling roads, sewers and expressways, with a $9.5 billion state-of-good restore backlog this 12 months anticipated to double over the subsequent decade, he stated.