Waterloo — Ward 5

It should be more transparent and accessible

It should be more transparent and accessible

Please describe one concrete example of a trade-off you would support (or oppose) when costs rise faster than revenues.candidate's own words

For Waterloo, I would support setting a clear target for a modest tax reduction and requiring Council and staff to identify efficiencies and lower-priority expenditures that can be deferred, reduced or eliminated to achieve it. I would not support simply cutting essential services or necessary infrastructure maintenance to produce a lower tax bill. Instead, I would look first at administrative costs, discretionary programs, duplication of services, consulting expenditures and projects that can reasonably be postponed. My concern is that continually increasing taxes to match rising costs is not a sustainable long-term strategy. Residents are facing higher costs in virtually every part of their household budgets, and municipal government has a responsibility to recognize that reality.

Would you like to provide any additional context for your views on budgets?candidate's own words

The budget should never be the source of economic inflation. Long term infrastructure should not add to debt. Infrastructure should be funded as much as possible up front and not exceed budgets

If you chose "It should be more transparent and accessible", please describe how.candidate's own words

I would support a budget process that presents each major proposed increase alongside the alternatives: what it costs, what service it provides, whether it is essential, and what the consequences would be of delaying, reducing or eliminating it. Residents should be able to see not only the proposed budget, but also the choices Council is being asked to make. I would also support publishing a clear, plain-language summary showing how much of a typical property tax bill goes to each level of government and identifying the specific factors responsible for any municipal tax increase. Multi-year commitments and the future operating and infrastructure costs of major projects should be clearly identified rather than looking only at the current year’s expenditure.

It should be more transparent and accessible

Please describe one concrete example of a trade-off you would support (or oppose) when costs rise faster than revenues.candidate's own words

I would oppose any scheme to privatize services. First, because there is no evidence that it saves money, but also because I am philosophically opposed to private interests profiting off essential public services.

Would you like to provide any additional context for your views on budgets?candidate's own words

The RIM Park debt (an example of poor Council oversight in the past) will finally be paid off in 2031. That will ease some of the fiscal pressure that the City of Waterloo has felt since 2001 (removing $19 million a year in debt payments from the budget) and provide Council with a range of choices, from limiting tax increases, to building reserves, to enhancing services -- or some combination of the three. While the next term of council ends in November 2030, it will fall to this group of Councillors to plan for this sea-change in municipal finances.

If you chose "It should be more transparent and accessible", please describe how.candidate's own words

Posting explainer videos showing how money is raised and how it is spent, as well as which areas the municipality has discretion and which ones they do not.

It should be more transparent and accessible

Please describe one concrete example of a trade-off you would support (or oppose) when costs rise faster than revenues.candidate's own words

Raising user fees inhibits people's ability to access vital services (eg. swim lessons)

If you chose "It should be more transparent and accessible", please describe how.candidate's own words

Increased transparency makes understanding municipal politics easier and more accessibile