Norfolk County Council has officially accepted both the Rate Supported Operating Budget and Levy Supported Operating Budget.
On Tuesday, the work from the multiple budget meetings throughout this month was finally completed in the chambers.
The Rate budget saw only one change, reducing a proposed service level increase to one full-time equivalent from the two proposed.
The rate requirement landed at $26,654,200, an 11.% per cent increase over 2022.
This will translate to an annual increase of $112, or 8.5 per cent, to the average residential bill.
The levy budget saw some more notable changes.
Those include the addition of membership in the South Central Ontario Region Economic Development Corporation, approval of a curator position for Heritage and Culture, removal of the planned increase for Council salaries, supporting a service level increase to address staffing at the Norfolk County Public Library, re-prioritization of selected levy-funded capital projects, and removing the 2023 contribution to the Council Initiatives Reserve.
This set the net tax levy at $119,355,900, an 8 per cent increase over 2022.
This will mean a $182.14, or 5.7 per cent, increase to property taxes for the average homeowner.
Completion of the budget deliberations also confirms gross capital expenditures of $837,798,000 from 2023 to 2032, with $61,208,000 in projects planned to be initiated in 2023.