La Nation council has approved the municipality’s 2020 budget.

Councillors unanimously approved the budget when they met on January 27.  In 2020, the municipality will collect $737,165 more in tax revenue than it did in 2020.  The proposed tax rate increase for 2020 is 1.8 per cent.  That means the taxes for a residential property valued at $100,000 will be $714.52, or $12.61 more than in 2019.

Once assessment growth is factored in, the municipality is anticipating a total tax revenue increase of 5.3 per cent in 2020.  Development is particularly strong in the western part of La Nation in Limoges and near Highway 417.

The commercial and agricultural rates are also increasing by 1.8 per cent.  The industrial rate is decreasing by 6.69 per cent and the multi residential rate is set to go down by 3.29 per cent.

Sewer rates across the municipality are increasing by 2.5 per cent, and the quarterly water rate for St-Isidore is increasing by 1.48 per cent which means a 1.82 per cent invoice rate increase for sewer and water customers in that village.

In Limoges, a 2.5 per cent water rate increase combined with a 9.09 per cent backwash rate increase will result in a 1.46 per cent invoice increase for properties with only municipal water connections.

For combined water and sewer customers in Limoges, the quarterly water rate is increasing by 1.98 per cent and the quarterly sewer rate by two per cent.  This will result in a 1.38 per cent increase on customer’s invoices.

The most significant increases in operations expenses for La Nation in 2020 are $351,598 for Public Works, $250,254 more for Administration and Finance, and $122,870 more for Recreation.

Councillor Francis Brière questioned why some departments had increased so much.  Maisonneuve explained that main reasons were increases in the regular costs of operations.

Councillor Marie-Noëlle Lanthier was curious about how transportation and protection spending in La Nation compares to other municipalities.  Brière, Maisonneuve, and Mayor François St-Amour noted that costs among municipalities vary due to geography, the distance of the road system, and the number of villages within the municipality.

Remuneration

The 2020 budget also includes a 1.75 per cent remuneration increase for councillors, retroactive to January 1.  The mayor’s salary for 2020 is $50,875.00, and councillors will be paid $28,184.91.  The yearly allowance for conventions, seminars, and education for council members remains unchanged at $5,000.

St-Amour said the 1.75 per cent increase is the same amount that was given this year to regular municipal employees.

Capital Projects

In 2020, $34,791,987 in new or ongoing municipal capital projects are taking place in La Nation.  Those include $17,414,000 for water and sewer system equipment upgrades throughout the municipality, and the new $13,791,571 sports complex in Limoges.  Public works capital projects total $3,012,896 and include $1,053,000 for the completion of the Innovation Industrial Park$393,700 for improvements, to St-Isidore Road, and $188,115 for construction on Rue St-Paul.