All over the world, Cities have more responsibility than ever. How a City provides services for its Citizens, spends money and sets priorities has a big impact on everyday life; like how much your City spends on emergency services determines how long it take a firetruck to get to your house. What your City spends on roads determines how you get to work in the morning or how you get your kids to school and what your city spends on street lights and police can effect how safe feel in your neighbourhood. How your City invests your tax dollars is important. The City’s budget is one of the most important decisions made in your community each year.
But what exactly is a city budget and how is it determined?
The City of Meadow Lake operates within the annual operating and capital budgets set by Council each year. Budget planning takes several months with Council receiving input from all departments. Typically, Council aims to have the next year's budget adopted by December of each year. The budget strives to strike a balance between effective use of resources and service delivery for residents.
As a Saskatchewan municipality, various laws require us to be transparent, open and accountable. Citizens have the right to request access to the records of their municipality. Our aim is to be transparent and accountable, while improving services and enabling the public to stay informed.
The City of Meadow Lake believes in the proactive release of information through self-serve portals like our website, which allows information be downloaded and viewed in different formats. This allows citizens to do their own analysis of the data provided; such as minutes, bylaws, financial documents, etc. By proactively disclosing these records, it can save citizens – as well as the city or municipality – time and cost in requesting the information in person or in print.
Below, the annual budget and financial statements and other relevant financial reports are posted after their approval by Council. Please feel free to contact the City Treasurer if you have any questions about these documents.