Town council gets fiscal update

By Kaicheng Xin
Staff Reporter

Administration at the Town of Rocky Mountain House provided a fiscal update and analysis at the regular council meeting on Oct. 15.

The updates and analyses happen regularly every quarter, providing the council with an oversight of the town’s financial state. 

This year, the town has performed better in some areas compared to previous years, and worse in others.

The administration reported that revenue from fitness and passes at the recreation centre has seen a significant increase since COVID. There was also an increase from fines and penalties due to tax penalties applied in August.

Operations and infrastructure are at 73 per cent of the budget, consistent with previous years at this time. Most grants from federal, provincial, and local sources have been recognized at 75 per cent.

“Social services include FCSS, and most FCSS grants to other organizations have been distributed in the first few months of the year,” according to the administration. 

“Overall, right now, we are sitting on a project surplus of $392,658, with revenue at about 75 per cent, which is on target as we’re three-quarters of the way through the year,” said the town’s Corporate Services director, Betty Quinlan. 

She added that expenditures are at 72 per cent, slightly lower than expected.

The town’s administration has used 79 percent of their budget, which is slightly higher than usual due to increased legal fees for the year. 

Some parts of the budget, like water and sewer, are harder to determine and will depend on whether there are significant breaks, with the utilities budget currently at 67 per cent. 

The total capital budget for the year is $34,732,252 with $26,249,819 allocated to the waste water treatment plant (WWTP) that is under construction.

Other project budgets total $8,482,433, and $8,735,081 has been spent, with $6,624,704 used on the WWTP. 
The town also made $68,000 from asset sales.

The fiscal update was accepted as information by a vote of council.