M E M O R A N D U M

TO:                  Mayor
Frank Scarpitti and Members of Council

John
W. Livey, Chief Administrative Officer

Commissioners

FROM:            Fuwing
Wong, Manager of Financial Planning

DATE:             January 15, 2007

SUBJECT:       2007 Budget
Kick-off

Budget
Sub-Committee meetings to develop the Town’s 2007 Budget will commence
January 22nd.  Other
meetings are outlined in the January 15th General Committee report
on the proposed 2007 Budget Sub-Committee Schedule.

The focus
of the Budget Sub-Committees will be on the three major components of the
Town’s Budget, e.g. Capital, Operating and Waterworks.  In addition, there are several important
updates and discussions planned for the 2007 Budget Sub-Committee meetings,
including:

an economic/environmental
scan to communicate budgetary pressures faced by the Town;

an update of the Reserve
Study;

discussion on the
Town’s Revenue Strategy;

discussion on options to
restructure the Capital Budget to separate capital assets from other items
that can be considered operating budget;

the impact of legislation
related to Building Permit Revenues (Bill 124) and the Development Fee
By-law on the Town’s budgets; and

an update on the Municipal
Funding Agreement (“Gas Tax” Revenue)

At the
first Budget Sub-Committee meeting, on January 22nd, staff will
present an economic/environmental scan, an update on the proposed operating
budget, and an overview of major projects included in the capital binder.

Detailed
review of capital projects, on an exception basis, is scheduled to commence at
the second Budget Sub-Committee meeting in February (proposed date of the
meeting is February 5th).
To ensure all Councillors have sufficient time to review the proposed capital
budget, the attached Capital Binder is being distributed at the January 15th
General Committee meeting.

The
binder contains the following:

A summary, by Commission
& Department, of all preliminary 2007 Capital projects;

Detailed Capital Funding
Request forms supporting each project listed on the Summary (sorted by
Department & project number); and

A summary of Projects
Requiring Further Discussion (last tab in the binder).

The summary,
by Commission & Department, is located in the first tab of the binder.  Each project listed on the summary has a
unique 4-digit project number, a project description, followed by the total
cost of the project and the sources of funding.

The
Capital Funding Request forms, submitted by Departments, are included in the
binder as support for the projects shown on the Summary.  The requisition forms are placed in
their corresponding department tab by ascending project number order.  The project numbers on the Capital
Funding Request forms are located on the top right hand corner of the form.

A summary
of capital projects, currently not in the budget, requiring further discussion
is located in the last tab of the binder.

Councillor
Requests for Enhanced/New Programs should be forwarded to the Finance
Department by Friday, February 2nd for incorporation into the 2007
Budget discussions at future Budget Sub-Committee Meetings.

Further,
any queries on Capital projects may be e-mailed to Fuwing
Wong, Manager of Financial Planning,
to be brought forward at future Budget Sub-Committee meetings on capital.  Commissioners/Directors will also be
available to answer your questions at the meetings.

Fuwing
Wong

Manager, Financial
Planning

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