'Difficult decisions' ahead as City of Winnipeg begins planning new 4-year budget

Tight targets for spending increases in the City of Winnipeg's upcoming four-year budget haveraised fears among some city councillorsaboutlayoffs or cuts to service at the city of Winnipeg.

A rough outline ofwhat may come was made public Friday, as the city of Winnipeg officially launched its first process of creating a budget covering four years, instead of the usual year-by-year practice.

The new four-year budget will present "difficult decisions and choices to make," Mayor Brian Bowman said in launching the budget process.

The draft budget for 2020-23 won't be tabled until February, but the city revealed expenditure targets for operating budgets on Friday.

Under those targets, property tax increases would continue at 2.33 per cent per year,with those funds dedicated to road improvements and a sliver of cash for rapid transit.

Police and fire services would see a two per cent increase each year, as would transit and water and waste. Public works is limited to 1.5 per cent per year increase, and community services toa slim 0.5 per cent per year.

None of those increases would meet or exceed the current rate of inflation.

Mayor Brian Bowman was flanked by his finance chair, Scott Gillingham, as the pair launched the new budget process in advance of a special meeting of council's executive policy committee.

Bothacknowledgedthe below-inflation budget increaseswill make it a challengeto balance the books and meet the costs of collective bargaining agreements with city workers, police officers, firefighters and paramedics.

"There is a road laid out to get us to a balanced budget in March but there will be some bumps along the way," Gillingham said.

"[There will be] difficult decisions and choices to be made for every member of council,"said Bowman language he used again when repeatedly asked about potential cuts.

But hesaid it was too early in the process to guess if there would be cuts, calling them "hypotheticals."

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A four-year budget process will provide "greater certainty and predictability for taxpayers," the mayor said, but warnedstructuraloperating deficits the city continues to run mean "revenues are simply not enough to meet services."

The new multi-year budget process also means a radically differentway of consulting both residents and councillors before the final decisions are made.

Department heads will make budget presentations to each standing committee of council next month,outlining suggestions on where and how to spend the city's billion-dollar budget.

Councillors and the public will be allowed to make submissions and suggestions to the committees.

Those recommendations will be further debated in subsequent meetings, beforeapreliminarybudget is created which will move on to executive policy committee and, ultimately, to city council, which is required to vote on the budget before March 31, 2020.

A round of community consultation will also allow the public to have more input.

Criticism from councillors

Criticism came quickly from some councillors about the new process, the looming possibility of service or job cuts, and the way Bowman and Gillinghaminformed councillors.

Waverley West Coun. Janice Lukes appeared at the EPC meeting to decry the lack of a strategic plan for the budget, and with criticism of the timing and scheduling of committee meetings to come.

"You are going to do it the way you do it, but I am not happy about it," Lukes told the mayor's cabinet.

Transcona's Shawn Nasonwas also concerned with the process, but also took aim at the possibility of cuts and tax increases in each of the next four years.

"I'm hearing from my constituents that we are paying more and we are getting less. And based on what I am seeing here the feeling that I'm getting is there is going to be a lot less services for the citizens of Winnipeg," Nason said.

Coun. Kevin Klein (Charleswood-Tuxedo-Westwood) also wondered where services might be cut, and blasted both the coming process and the lack of a spending review before the budget targets were set.

"I know they are saying this is a more inclusive opportunity, but you don't get to ask questions. It's a grand deflection, that's what this is. It's a wonderful marketing plan," said Klein.

Presentations to thestanding committees will begin on Nov. 12, with theWinnipeg Police Board's budget presentation, and continue through the month and into December.

The final budget decisions will be debated at city council in March.