Here at Toronto City Council for the budget meeting!
Discussion
Loading...
@GraphicMatt is also liveblogging with commentary!
Cllr Perks is absent as his mother has recently passed away (there is a moment of silence for her).
Speaker Nunziata is still reading out the explanation of how the budget works. Since the provincial "strong mayor" legislation (instituted when John Tory was mayor and the province was more kindly inclined to the idea), the Mayor has much more power over the budget, and Council only has the opportunity to vote on the distribution of certain funds. She can also veto amendments for up to 10 days after the meeting.
Mayor Chow has set a 2.2% increase in residential property tax, which is basically rock bottom. This has fueled speculation that she will run again in the mayoral election this fall. Really, there are no downsides to this:
A) she runs again, opponents unable to attack her for high taxes (yes, previous years' increases were higher, but the taxpayer won't be able to remember it)
B) someone else wins the election (either because she loses or doesn't run at all): they are financially screwed and have to raise taxes more anyway, and if she runs again in the future she can attack them for either i) high taxes, ii) the social costs of austerity, or iii) both
Oh, also as per my West End Phoenix calendar, today is the birthday of the Eaton Centre!
Cllr Pasternak is taking the opportunity to inveigh against pro-Palestinian protests as "mobs on the street" and citing arrest and charge numbers that I frankly would double-check, alleging the police are "hiding behind the Charter" ("protecting the Charter" is the reply from police). No, this is not on topic.
Cllr Saxe stands up to ask the City Manager, "Why are we raising taxes again this year?" Most of the seats in my section are taken up by staff, and I hear a tired sotto voce "Oh my God…" from somewhere. The problem with "playing dumb" poorly is that if you don't pull it off, you come off as "actually dumb".
Chat, is anyone confused about why the City needs to raise taxes every year? I can explain if people really need it.
Saxe next asks a question on everyone's mind: given the massive police corruption scandal just uncovered, are any changes to the police budget warranted? This is mostly rhetorical so I don't pay attention to the answer. (The police budget is getting their requested increase and that is unlikely to change unless the mayor personally desires it, which given aforesaid upcoming election she probably doesn't)
~83 more replies (not shown)
Wow, we actually got a mention of the property tax deferral/cancellation program for seniors with disabilities before someone complained that tax increases will make seniors with disabilities homeless. (Once they're homeless, fuck 'em)
Budget Chief Shelley Carroll obliquely defends the 7% police budget increase, saying it's largely "built-in" to phase in the costs of the latest collective bargaining agreement.
Bored so paging through Briefing Notes again. Ones I recommend reading/looking through further:
- #6: State of good repair backlog (PDF)
- #9: 2026 service levels in the prepared budget (PDF): a good place to find less-advertised cuts
- #21: Cycling network implementation (PDF) - note that "cycle tracks" are the only category that many people would really count as "bike lanes"
Absolute fucking useless briefing note: #13: Budget reductions and offsets (PDF), which just refers you to the individual division notes. "Details of Efficiencies identified in the 2026 budget are available in the individual Division and Agency budget notes." if you're going to make me read through every single budget note why are you even doing a briefing note aaaghhhhghgh
We just had a rapid-fire volley of questions from Cllr Bradford, who is no doubt preparing for another mayoral run and is setting himself up as the Fiscal Conservative Rival.
The police chief (currently answering Cllr Thompson's questions about crime trends) has a very sore throat, no doubt due to all the press conferences and meetings he has been having to have lately.
Oh, a class of young students has entered to watch the proceedings!
no context: "I can speak specifically to Taylor Swift…"
Nunziata tries and fails to rein in Cllr Colle who enjoys using the phrase "big fat feds".
I didn't have time for breakfast and with about an hour to lunch I am getting hungry and distracted.
If the meeting wraps up on time (by 6), I could go see Iron Lung
Wow, I did not expect Cllr Crisanti to bring up a question about something actually new and relevant (TTC fare capping)
Oh wow, we're done with questions, now to speeches. Mayor Chow is up first, with a Relatable™ anecdote about the price of groceries. Blah blah affordability.
In front of me, a guy from TPS seems to be having Copilot explain tax laws to him. (There are bulleted lists and emoji in headings.) What could possibly go wrong?
Chow says this budget is about "supporting small businesses…young couples…Mom not having to worry about the kids going hungry at school."
Holyday: "Would you agree this budget seems to draw on reserves more than we have in the past?"
Chow replies that the City has, through "prudent fiscal management", been putting aside money over the past few years, and that is why they can afford to draw on reserves.
Holyday, sounding legitimately concerned (he isn't): What about when they're all drawn down?
An actual good quip from Holyday: "So we're going to be running on fumes, from the gas tax."
Bradford: "Will you commit, if you are re-elected, to [limit the property tax increase in] next year's budget to the rate of inflation?"
Chow somewhat obliquely turns to how much the City still has in its reserves and is contributing, and that now is the time to blah blah blah.
Bradford asks again. Chow gleefully points out that within the last two years Bradford moved to take out $72 million from reserves.
Bradford argues that his reasons were valid, but Chow is "trying to buy Torontonians' votes."
Chow points out that Bradford's support for drawing $42 million was to lower property tax rates by 1%.
We have another class! Grades 5 and 6 from the Africentric Alternative School in Downsview. They are getting a much more interesting show.
Nunziata accidentally refers to Burnside as Bradford. To be fair, they are both tall bald white guys in dark blue suits. Bradford's head is shinier.
Burnside argues that adding snow removal could add a "3% tax increase" and if so, would Chow consider it. They get a bit into the weeds—well, snowbanks. Chow says the $130 million estimate is just one model and, for example, there's a cheaper $24 million option.
Nunziata: "And hopefully, we'll never get snow again."
Me, gazing into the future where Toronto's climate is more like Washington, DC's, with all the complications and implied knock-on effects that come with: "Uhhhhhhhhh…"
In response to longtime Toronto Public Library Board member Cllr Ainslie, Chow does a little victory-lap about the success of increased library hours.
Ainslie asks about the federal government coming to the table. Chow says she gave Carney an envelope for Chinese New Year saying that they should build affordable housing fast, because horses are fast, because it's the Year of the Horse. She hopes that "big decisions" are soon to come and that they'll be able to take advantage of the full construction season.
Cllr Cheng's line of questioning seems to imply she is against defunding student nutrition programs.
The Lowest Bar in the World.jpg
"New Deal 2.0" has real "presentation_FINAL_FINAL (2).docx" vibes
The quorum call chimes will continue until morale improves we have fucking quorum, only half an hour to lunch, let's focus people. I think Bradford might be doing an election-y media scrum but unfortunately I am seated in the wrong place to see what's going on up there.
Edit: maybe it's the Africentric Alternative School students getting a tour of the clamshell?
This "barely-at-inflation tax increase from progressive mayor" thing has decalibrated my political compass, I expect some councillors to be criticizing the budget when they're not really.
I admit it is a bit of a disappointment to not be able to see how Cllr Perks (a reliable supporter of the mayor) would justify the low increase.
Cllr Carroll, the budget chief, has some big motions dispensing the various discretionary funds allowed for in the budget. Just scroll down to the bottom here. Omg are we going to wrap this up before lunch?
Carroll is very insistent that the police budget increase is "nothing!" but the (pre-planned) hiring increase and collective bargaining agreement. I mean on one hand, okay sure, but on the other hand, the police budget has always been virtually all labour costs.
Holyday has a motion (once again, scroll down to the bottom) to reduce the TTC reserve draw by increasing TTC fares 10% for adults and, essentially, cancel the fare capping and "kids under 12 ride for free" policies.
Holyday says the 2% tax on the wealthiest homeowners is "taking money from people who earned it and distributing it to others."
Okay, we're recessing till 2:00. Back then!
OH WAIT there's an anti-poverty rally outside City Hall
2 media
Side note: still crushed by the loss of Café on the Square, the unofficial City Hall canteen https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/toronto-city-hall-s-caf-shutters-after-more-than-25-years-serving-politicians-public-servants/article_d43de4dd-b3da-4e81-a1b7-5cf80525e0f6.html Particularly Norm!
Oh sick, there are samosas at the rally
Visited my happy place (the stationery section of Muji)
Back at City Council, where Speaker Nunziata threatens to pass a motion to accept the budget "as is" unless they meet quorum.
"You learn more on Budget Committee than any other committee," says Cllr Pasternak, recalling his four-year "sentence" on the committee.
Like others, he sounds a warning bell about dipping into the reserves, citing extreme flooding and COVID as events Toronto could only cope with because of deep reserves.
Pasternak now describing "hateful mobs" "harassing" people on Bathurst, people fleeing from "unstable" people on the subways, violent attacks on Jewish institutions, etc., the usual. He also mentions the uptick in reported assaults on LGBT people, which I would take more seriously if this wasn't coming from the guy who reliably tries to defund Pride if there is even a whiff of pro-Palestinian participation.
Cllr Bravo is concerned about the delay Pasternak is asking for on the building of a shelter in his ward. She notes that keeping people in a hotel, which might involve extending a lease, is very expensive; that inflation could lead to increase in capital costs.
"My concern is being fair to local residents," says Pasternak, who does not consider homeless people "residents". He mentions that many are Italian speakers and says more time is needed to reach out to them. My dude how do you not have Italian speakers in your office
Carroll gets Pasternak to say "I don't think we should be putting a shelter beside a daycare." Ah, there we are
Oh hey, Cllr Shan gives a nod to the people rallying outside. "For one of the wealthiest cities in the world, we cannot be the child poverty capital of Canada," he says, mentioning one of the points one of the speakers mentioned.
Totally superficial observation: I really like Cllr Kandavel's sunny goldenrod-leaning-mustard-yellow sweater. It is a colour I am afraid to try to pull off myself though
Cllr Cheng laments having to advocate for social & cultural investments for North York every year. Me (having watched tired community organizers beg for funding for student nutrition programs for the past 15 years): staring blankly in to the distance get used to it
"Go talk to people in the neighbourhoods. Ask them what they think about taking away police officers," says Cllr Colle.
me (from Parkdale): ABSO-FUCKING-LUTELY