My perspective - Don’t miss the chance

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Published on Thursday, November 17, 2016

By Kate Jackman-Atkinson

Neepawa Banner/Neepawa Press

Every spring, three levels of government release their budgets and for the most part, Canadians respond with questions and concern. They wonder why the highway they travel is still crumbling, why their health care needs aren’t being met and why certain industries or businesses are being chosen as winners. The problem is that by then, it’s too late to start complaining about how governments are spending our money. 

We aren’t talking about pocket change. Different tax rates, types of taxes and income levels make it hard to get a definitive picture of Canadians’ tax burden, but there are a few estimates. The Fraser Institute calculates the annual Tax Freedom Day, the day in which Canadians have earned enough money to pay all of their taxes. In 2016, Tax Freedom Day fell on June 7 for both Manitobans and Canadians, based on the average Canadian family earning $105,236 in income, of which, a total of $45,167 will be paid in taxes (42.9 per cent).

Despite our taxes being no small matter, the average citizen seems disinterested, until it’s too late. When the budget is released, it’s too late to provide feedback that can be used in a constructive way. Now is the time to have a say.

Every fall, the provincial government holds about four in person pre-budget consultation meetings, as well as a couple of phone-in meetings. While these wrapped up at the end of last month, there are still opportunities to provide feedback about what Manitobans want to see in their budget. For those still wanting to share their thoughts and ideas, there are a couple of options. People can contact their MLA, some of whom are having local pre-budget consultation meetings. They can also use the government’s online tool to help plan the budget. The survey can be found at http://manitoba.citizenbudget.com/ and guides citizens through questions about such traditional expenditures as retail sales tax and personal income tax, but also areas such as competitiveness and red tape reduction. As respondents select their choices, the progress bar identifies how each change impacts the budget and associated deficit.

It’s an interesting tool and helps Manitobans think about the trade offs required in order to craft a budget.

For Town of Neepawa residents, the Town has begun their pre-budget consultations with the public earlier than normal this year. Usually, in the new year, a preliminary budget is presented to the public, who then raise concerns about proposed cuts to services and changes to support for infrastructure and organizations. 

This year, a five minute online survey was created and is currently available to interested residents. The survey asks residents about budget categories, including sanitation, recreation, support services, protective services, transportation services and growth. In each of the areas, residents are asked if they feel spending levels should be reduced, maintained or increased.

There are also estimated costs of these services based on an average assessment of $200,000.

For those in communities that aren’t holding official pre-budget consultations, councils are already sitting down planning their spending for the coming year. Now is the time to let them know what you think should be priorities. 

Canadians value the services provided by government– we value roads and bridges, water and sewer, health care and support for the infrastructure that makes our communities places in which we want to live. But we also work hard to fund them.  Governments don’t know what we value without us telling them, they are asking for our input, next spring it will be too late to make your voice heard.