The administration, finance and personnel committee chairman gave a pat on the back to the county treasury department on April 29 when he reported a surplus from 2009 of $2,134,700.
That is 3.2% of last year’s tax levy.
Committee chairman Chris White said coming that close on an budget of $165-million means the department did “a great job.”
Dyer said in his report many of the “significant department variances are as a result of the allocation of indirect costs.” He provided a description of the significant numbers from the 2009 budget.
The roads department saved $350,000 due to lower than expected winter control costs, which was offset slightly by higher roads maintenance costs.
The county museum and archives had savings of $1.5-million as a result of the approval of a Build Canada grant. Dyer said that money was transferred to the corporate contingency reserve fund and appears as an offsetting variance in the general expenses and revenue line.
There was a higher than expected amount taken in planning application fees ($45,000), plus lower than expected legal and professional fees ($90,000) and savings in property mapping of $25,000.
Social services was over budget as a result of higher than expected Ontario Works and Ontario Disability Support Program payments of about $165,000, offset by higher than anticipated subsidy from the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities (about $80,000), and about $25,000 in savings in child care.
Social housing saved over $60,000 due to lower than planned minor capital expenses, due to the Social Housing Renovation and Repair Fund approvals, plus savings of approximately $120,000 due to utility and property tax savings and some $60,000 in savings to non-profit and co-op housing providers.
Offsetting some of that was higher than expected costs for maintenance and snow removal at Wellington Terrace Seniors’ Home, of $60,000.
Dyer said in his report the county also had savings of $426,500 based on supplementary and omitted assessment runs produced by the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation reconciliation of $501,300, plus revenue from Grand River Raceway and the slots of $182,000.
That was offset by the transfer to the contingency reserves for the Build Canada approval of the archives project in Aboyne of $1,507,000, and additional tax and other write-offs of $142,000.
Dyer said there are still some figures to come, but he does not expect them to substantially alter the results in his report. He noted the extra money is going to the county’s contingency reserve plan, as determined by council last year.
