Adoption of 2024 budgets

Nov 14, 2023

Edmundston City Council has just adopted budgets for the new municipal entity for the first time. The 2023 budgets for the first year of existence of the new City of Edmundston had to be approved by the New Brunswick Department of Local Governance and Governance Reform.

The 2024 budgets were prepared with the objective of maintaining a strong municipality in good financial health and able to support community needs. They are broken down as follows:

·        General operations: $42,326,595

·        Water and wastewater operations: $7,059,719

·        Electricity: $37,283,711

Tax rates by sector

Water and wastewater operating funds

Budgeting for the water and wastewater operating funds is based on the 'user pays' principle. The City of Edmundston now has two separate systems and two separate funds, one for the Edmundston sector and another for the Rivière-Verte sector.

Water and sewer rates remain among the lowest in the province and will not increase in 2024. The debt ratio for this utility has fallen from 9.8% to 8.4% compared to last year's budget.

"There are still challenges ahead for the Rivière-Verte Sector Water and Sewer operating fund, which has accumulated a $126,000 deficit since 2018. However, City Council wants to minimize the tax impact on the citizens of the sector, which is why we are planning a reserve outflow of $30,000 in 2024 to contribute to the shortfall to balance the budget," says Finance Department Director Marco Daigle. 

Electricity generation fund

The operating budget for the electricity production fund remains stable and comparable to previous years. The debt ratio is falling slightly, from 9.8% in 2023 to 9.1% in 2024. Edmundston Energy has not budgeted a rate increase for 2024, but it should be noted that any increase by New Brunswick Power automatically results in an increase in Edmundston.

"Thanks to good planning and responsible management, Edmundston's budgets are fully in line with our vision, which is to provide quality services to the public and ensure that our infrastructure, facilities and equipment are maintained in good condition. Like the entire population, we are putting our shoulder to the wheel to ensure the success of this redesigned municipality," explains Mayor Eric Marquis.

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CONTACT: Marco Daigle, Assistant CAO and Director of Administrative Services, 506.739.2119