Penhold mayor asks province to reconsider how it asks for education and police funding

• Share on Facebook
• Share on Bluesky
• Share on X
• Copy Link

“The last two years, we stayed the same and then went lower in 2022 with the tax rate. For residents, I hope it shows that even with rising costs, even for the municipality, we’re able to do more with less. We aren’t cutting services,” he says.

Specific dates and times

Province alerts public to measles exposure at The Hamlets in Red Deer County

42m ago

very, very dry

Two Red Deer County grass fires Tuesday spark reminder for extreme caution

58m ago

may 11, 2:20 p.m.

Red Deer RCMP seeking assistance after assault in Lancaster

2h ago

“In fact, we add on to the community services we deliver; even though we’re bringing in less money than the year before.”

But that isn’t easy, Yargeau adds, when the province dips its hands into municipal pockets.

“The provincial government continually comes to us to collect more and more money on its behalf, which makes it hard as a municipality to see growth and plan new projects. We don’t want to hit residents with a municipal tax increase over and above what the province is making us collect,” he says.

“It’s hard for smaller communities to be sustainable, to be honest. Not that Penhold is in that scenario, but others are. We are very fortunate to have a good working relationship with Red Deer County, and they’ve put up funding for programs which residents here get to use. But again, not everyone has that.”

Yargeau adds that it makes even less sense that municipalities are legislated to pass an operating budget before year’s end, yet the education requisition isn’t actually finalized by the province until the spring.

This means the 1.28 per cent is actually an estimate and can change prior to the property tax increase actually being finalized.

According to the Town, council requested a letter be drafted and forwarded to the province requesting it holds the line on their demand for payments, given reports about a provincial financial surplus.

Yargeau says the province should find a different way to fund education.

—

In other Penhold council highlights…
*via Town administration

• Penhold and the City of Red Deer entered a new 5-year extension for providing Fire Dispatch Services within Penhold, 24 hours a day 7 days a week, for the term of the agreement. Penhold appreciates the partnership with the City on this service.
• Penhold and Red Deer County entered into a 5-year Library Grant agreement to continue providing the same high level of service to the rural residents as is currently being provided to Penhold residents. Council expressed appreciation for the move forward in financial assistance to keep programs intact.