The Municipality of Bifrost-Riverton's one step closer to approving their 2016 budget. They gave it first reading at yesterday's council meeting. The budget includes $4.9 million in expenditures, up by just under $900,000 from last year. Reeve Harold Foster says they're increasing their spending on drainage by a substantial amount, leading to the increase in spending. 

Reeve Harold Foster

"We're looking at drainage, getting more done. We're going to take extra money to do that, and it's fairly high budget actually. We've allocated about $400,000 toward contract drainage, plus what our own people can accomplish with our machinery. There should be significant drainage put in place this year."

He notes the hiring of a public works foreman, and the purchase of a pick-up truck and loader also contribute to the spending increase. Despite the increase, Foster says they've reduced the mill rate for both the former RM of Bifrost area and the village of Riverton. Despite the lower rate, some property owners may see a significant boost in what they're paying for taxes. Foster says farmers will see the biggest rise, given the changes in assessment.

"The assessment on farm property is...ridiculous, to put it bluntly. It's based on sales of course, so I guess farmers are willing to pay that kind of a price for farmland. I know, just from my own taxes I have some farmland and one of the farms the assessment went up 80 per cent."

It's the municipality's second budget since the amalgamation of Bifrost and Riverton at the beginning of 2015. Foster says they're still working through some of the requirements, citing a four-year plan to have a single mill rate for the entire municipality.

"We were given four years to come up with equal mill rates right through. In our budget, we have things allocated to the village of Riverton, and we have things allocated to the RM of Bifrost, then we have at large with both pay a share on. It's a process we'll be working through, so at the end of the four years it will all be at large, other than special services."

Foster says they'll be holding a public hearing on the 2016 budget at their May 12th meeting.