ST. MARY’S — Taxes are going up by two cents for all ratepayers in the Municipality of the District of St. Mary’s this year – part of a newly approved $4.7-million operating budget that Warden James Fuller says was built on “a series of achievable priorities” and months of painstaking effort.
The $4,735,080 plan for 2025-26 – up 15.99 per cent over last year – is balanced without drawing from reserves. In a press release following the April 2 annual general meeting (AGM), where council voted unanimously to adopt, Fuller said the budget “reflects many hours over several months with the council establishing a series of achievable priorities and municipal staff working to craft a balanced budget to advance them.”
Council approved residential and resource tax rates of $0.98 per $100 of assessment and a commercial rate of $2.29 – up from $0.96 and $2.27, respectively. The increase will generate approximately $2.83 million in property tax revenue. Solid waste charges and street lighting – which increases to $93.72 from $88.48 per account – and sewer service area rates will raise another $573,531.
In an email to The Journal, Fuller said the reasons for the increases are clear: provincial downloads, inflation and council’s commitments.
“Police and school rates account for a major portion of our budget as well as various payments to the province,” he wrote. “Additionally, when increasing property tax relief for lower income residents, it requires an adjustment to compensate the reduced revenue.”
The municipality’s low-income tax exemption budget has been raised to $25,000, up from $10,080 last year. That line item appears under general government services, which total $860,098.
Among notable new investments is a significant bump in funding to St. Mary’s eight volunteer fire departments – from $6,400 to $10,000 each. “Volunteer fire departments receive no federal assistance and sporadic, minimal assistance from the province,” Fuller said. “As substantial as this may look, it barely covers the cost of one air pack.”
Protective services – including RCMP contributions, emergency measures, fire grants and inspection services – will cost $1.03 million this year. That includes $677,027 in mandated RCMP funding, a 5.2 per cent increase. Transportation services – budgeted at $120,000 – cover the municipality’s share of J-Class road maintenance as well as street lighting expenses paid to Nova Scotia Power.
Environmental health services will cost $923,448 and include sewer maintenance, snow clearing, public works staffing and vehicles, and new investments in construction and demolition waste disposal and extended transfer station hours. Environmental development services, budgeted at $477,987, include planning and subdivision work, land use and economic development, housing project coordination and climate adaptation efforts. It also funds a range of small business and tourism initiatives, including the municipality’s new digital tourism campaign launching this year.
Education expenses are also climbing. The municipality’s required contribution to the Strait Regional Centre for Education is $767,665, up 9.2 per cent over last year.
Capital expenditures total $715,393, supporting 25 projects from Recplex compressor upgrades and Sherbrooke Library kitchen renovations to dry hydrants, sewer infrastructure and solar power installations under the Low Carbon Communities program. The majority of that budget is tied to secured or pending grants from other levels of government.
A total of $45,000 has been earmarked for general government grants: $22,000 for organizational projects, $20,000 in five equal district grants and $3,000 in student scholarships. Council amended its general government grants policy by lowering the minimum project threshold to $1,000 and eliminating a restriction that prevented organizations from applying more than once in two fiscal years. The deadline for applications is Wednesday, May 14.
Finally, recreation and cultural services are budgeted at $555,823. That includes Recplex operations, swim program redevelopment, equity and inclusion initiatives, a municipal newsletter and funding to support the recruitment of health care practitioners.
Councillors also approved the annual remuneration resolution, which sets councillors’ pay at $17,321, plus mileage and daily meal allowances, plus $11,535 for the warden’s position and $3,920 for the deputy warden.
In his email, Fuller emphasized the challenge of delivering core services in a rural community (population, according to Statistics Canada, of 2,166 in 2021) with a small tax base.
“Numerous mandates set by the province or federal governments, as well as the need for specialized materials for our water and ice facilities (combined with our very small staff), require us to contract out for services,” he wrote.
Still, he credited municipal staff for minimizing the burden on taxpayers.
“If you delve into the numbers though, you will see that the staff is very skilled in obtaining grants and awards that cover a great deal of our outlays,” Fuller said. “Without that help, tax rates (based on our small population) would be staggering.”
