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Budget

The 2025 Operating Budget and 2025-2026 Capital Budget prioritize responsible financial management while continuing to deliver the services residents rely on. The budget reflects a balanced approach to meeting community needs and managing expenses, emphasizing sustainability for the future.

Savings were achieved by reducing spending on materials and supplies (down 4% from 2024), and training and development (down 3% from 2024). These efforts helped offset increased costs, supporting the City’s commitment to service excellence.

The budget forecasts a 3.5% tax increase over 2024. Of that, 1.4% can be attributed to general economic inflationary pressures, 2% to the decrease in provincial funding for infrastructure-related expenditures, and 0.1% to a transit-related service enhancement. The final average tax increase will not be known until the spring after property assessments are complete.

  • Operating Budget: The 2025 operating budget requires a projected revenue of $130.6 million which is raised through property taxes (49%), utility services (27%), government transfers (9%), sale of services (8%), other income (3%), rent revenue (2%), and interest and penalties (2%).
  • Capital Budget: Capital expenses in 2025 are estimated to be $33.9 million and will include work on projects like Fire Hall 3, expanding the 47 Street multiway, building new amenities (e.g., a new community garden in Deer Valley) and improving roads in Willow Park. This will be paid for through City reserves (54%), grants (24%) and off-site supported debenture borrowing (21%).

Utility Fees

Utility fees collected by the City provide water, sewer, garbage collection, and stormwater infrastructure. Some costs are outside the City’s control and are determined by the service provider. For example, Arrow Utilities manages wastewater treatment for the City and charges a cost for that service. 

The 2025 Budget estimates a modest increase in overall utility costs to the following:

Utility Fees

Utility 2025 Fees and Charges Increase from 2024
Water $10.99 per month plus $2.90 per cubic meter 22 cents per month; 15 cents per cubic meter
Wastewater $10.20 per month plus $2.85 per cubic metre 20 cents per month; 26 cents per cubic metre
Stormwater $6.50 per month $1 per month
Solid Waste $25.83 per month 50 cents per month

Budget Planning Process and Timeline

Each budget year spans three years.

Budget planning document over a 3 year timeline

2024 Audited Financial Statements

MNP LLP, an independent third party, presented a clean audit opinion of the City’s 2024 year-end financial results at the public City Council meeting on April 14, 2025. The year-end results showed that the City came slightly under budget for operations in 2024, with a minimal 2.7% surplus, demonstrating effective financial management, tight control over expenditures, and accurate forecasting of revenue.

Previous Budgets

 

Budget Basics

Leduc’s budget is our plan for how money will be collected and spent over the next three years to support the programs, services, and infrastructure our community needs.

Each year, we review and approve the budget with a focus on both short-term and long-term goals. The operating budget looks three years ahead, while the capital budget looks ahead ten years. This helps the City provide steady services and prepare for future growth by planning and saving for big projects.

Since community needs and financial situations can change, we review and adjust the budget every year based on new needs, unexpected economic shifts, or changes in funding from the province or federal government.

Pie chart broken out on a Canadian Loonie
Coloured wheel highlighting where tax dollars are spent

Budget FAQ

Generally, the top three service areas in the 2025 operating budget are utility services, public services, and fire and ambulance services.

Every year, City Administration prepares a three-year operating budget and 10-year capital plan and presents it to the City Council for feedback and approval. When the 2025 operating budget was approved in early December, Council approved estimated revenues and spending for the next immediate fiscal year, and, in principle, the following two years. A three-year capital budget was approved in 2024. In early December, Council approved changes to 2025 and 2026 and, in principle, the following eight years.

Capital projects are paid for through developer contributions, provincial and federal grants, tax-supported and off-site supported debt and drawing from the City’s capital reserves.

The City has several measures to ensure that money is spent wisely:

  • A formal budgeting process which includes collaboration between Council and Administration, and public engagement. This process includes a detailed analysis of past spending, current economic conditions, public feedback and the needs of the community to determine which services and projects should be continued/discontinued, introduced or increased/decreased. Funds can only be spent if they are approved by Council.
  • The City issues and publicly reports annual financial statements featuring budgeted versus actual information. These financial statements show how property taxes and other revenues have been allocated. Additionally, the City publishes an annual report to report on spending, performance measures and detailed information on initiatives accomplished throughout the past year.
  • The City’s financials are audited each year by an independent auditor who provides an opinion on whether the financial statements fairly represent the City’s financial position. The results of the audit help ensure funds are used appropriately and there are no discrepancies in the financial reporting.
  • City Council maintains oversight of the budget by requiring Administration to report on the status of current budget spending on a quarterly basis, providing transparency and accountability.

Every year, an independent auditor reviews the city’s financial statements in accordance with the generally accepted Canadian auditing standards.

These are determined based on several factors including the cost of providing these services, benchmarking with other municipalities in the region and applicable legislation.

The amount of debt the City can carry is established by Alberta Municipal Affairs. As of Dec. 31, 2023, the City of Leduc held $75.6 million in long term debt, which is 43% of the total amount the City is permitted to carry and can be broken down into two categories: tax-supported debt and developer-supported debt.

Tax-supported debt comes from capital projects paid for with City funds. Developer-supported debt is paid for by off-site levy reserves and are not paid for with taxes. For example, the new snow storage site was funded by tax-supported debt while the Robinson reservoir was funded by developer-supported debt.

Debt servicing costs affect the operating budget when the projects are City funded. (Not funded through off-site levies or developer funding). These costs are included in the City’s operating budgets for the term of the debentures.

There are several reasons why two cities with the same population may have different operating budgets:

  • Cities may offer different levels or scopes of services. For example, the City of Leduc owns and operates the Leduc Recreation Centre. The TransAlta Tri Leisure Centre is co-owned by three municipalities but operates as a corporation and is governed by a board of directors.
  • Labour costs can vary depending on the cost of living in a city, union contracts, and collective bargaining agreements.
  • Differences in geography affect costs. Cities spread over a larger area will have increased costs for things like road maintenance and transit.