Budget and Finances

September 8, 2025 - Start

Mayor directs Administration to prepare the budget

October to November 2025 - Mayor Review

Mayor reviews Administration's budget and may edit

January 13, 2026 - Mayor's Budget

Special Council Meeting: Mayor officially tables the 2026 Proposed Business Plan and Budget

January 14 to February 5, 2026 - Public Engagement

Public engagement period via online platforms and other communication tools

Early February 2026 - Council Amendments

Special Council Meeting: Council meeting to endorse any proposed amendments. If no amendments, budget is deemed adopted

February 22, 2026 - Mayor Veto

Deadline for Mayor to veto amendments, otherwise amendments are deemed adopted

March 9, 2026 - Council Override

Deadline for Council to override veto(es). This requires 2/3 majority vote. Budget is deemed adopted

March 24, 2026 - Budget By-law

Regular Council Meeting: the Budget By-law is adopted

A municipal budget is a plan that shows how the Town will collect and spend money over the year.

It’s like a household budget, but for the whole community. It helps pay for services people use every day—like roads, parks, garbage collection, and emergency services. The budget also sets aside money to build and take care of things like buildings, sidewalks, and water pipes.

There are two main parts to the budget:

• Operating Budget – Covers the day-to-day expenses necessary to deliver municipal services such as road maintenance, snow removal, parks and recreation and emergency services.
  
  
• Capital Budget – Allocates funds for the construction, maintenance and improvement of Town infrastructure, including roads, facilities,, and parks.

Town staff prepares the annual budget, and the Mayor conducts the final review and may make changes. The Mayor then tables the budget to Council, where it goes through an amendment and approval process before being adopted.

This process helps make sure tax dollars are spent wisely to meet the needs of our community.

The municipal budget directly impacts your daily life as a resident of the Town. Here’s how:

• Property Taxes
  The budget helps determine how much you pay in property taxes each year. These taxes are the main source of revenue for the Town and are used to fund essential programs and services.
  
  
• Services You Rely On
  The budget funds the services you use every day—such as garbage and recycling collection, snow removal, road maintenance, public transit, fire and emergency services, parks, and recreational programs.
  
  
• Community Infrastructure
  It also pays for the repair, maintenance, and construction of important infrastructure like roads, sidewalks, water and wastewater systems, streetlights, and public buildings. A strong capital budget ensures the Town continues to invest in a safe and sustainable future.
  
  
• Community Growth and Quality of Life
  The budget supports community development projects like trails, libraries, and cultural or recreational facilities. These investments enhance the livability of the Town and help make Tecumseh a welcoming and vibrant place to live.
  
  
• Planning for the Future
  Through long-term financial planning, the budget also helps the Town prepare for future challenges and opportunities—ensuring services remain reliable and the community continues to thrive.

In short, the municipal budget shapes the quality of life in your neighbourhood. It ensures that tax dollars are used responsibly to meet the needs of residents today while planning wisely for tomorrow.

Your property taxes help pay for the many local services you rely on every day, like road maintenance, fire protection, garbage collection, parks, and more. But how are they calculated?

Here’s how it works:

1. Your Property’s Assessed Value

The value of your property is determined by the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC)—an independent, not-for-profit organization that assesses all properties in Ontario. MPAC looks at things like location, size, age, and features of your home to decide its assessed value.

2. Tax Rates Set by Different Levels of Government

Once your property's assessed value is known, it's multiplied by tax rates set by three government levels:

• Municipal (Town of Tecumseh):
  This portion pays for local services like roads, parks, stormwater management, garbage collection, water and wastewater, fire services, policing, by-law enforcement, and planning.

• County (County of Essex):
  This covers shared regional services like county roads, libraries, long-term care homes, social housing, public health, and land ambulance.

• Education (Province of Ontario):
  This portion funds the public and separate school boards in Ontario.

Each year, tax rates are approved through the budget process of each of these levels of government.

The Formula:

Total Property Tax = Assessed Property Value × (Municipal Rate + County Rate + Education Rate)

So, for example, if your home is assessed at $300,000 and the combined tax rate is 1.5%, your total property tax would be:

$300,000 × 0.015 = $4,500 annually

The Town of Tecumseh is responsible for issuing and collecting the full property tax bill. We then distribute the appropriate portions to the County and Province.

If you ever have questions about your assessment, you can contact MPAC directly at www.mpac.ca, and if you want to understand how the municipal tax rate is set, check out our budget process above.

With the introduction of Strong Mayor powers in 2025, the process for municipal budget preparation and approval has changed, but still largely follows the process of prior years except for the following to achieve regulatory compliance:

• Inclusion of a 1-year capital budget indicating firm projects for 2026
• Mayor’s involvement in roundtable budget review with Senior Administration. They may amend the budget at this time.
• Mayor’s participation in budget presentation

The intended goal of Strong Mayor powers is to support the provincial priorities including:

• Building 1.5 million new homes by 2031
• Constructing and maintaining infrastructure to support housing
• Transit, roads, utilities, and servicing

The Mayor has the final review of Administration's proposed budget and can make any changes before the budget is presented by the Mayor to Council. Therefore, the proposed budget is called the Mayor's Budget.