Budget Tracker 2019

At Common Sense Calgary, we believe that Calgary residents deserve to be informed about the crucial votes their Councillors are making.

In 2021 when your Councillor asks for your vote, you should know how they have represented your interests at City Hall over the past four years.

So today we're releasing Budget Tracker - a breakdown of how your Councillor and the Mayor voted on the key votes held during the budget debate.

By now, you have probably heard that tax rates for both residents and businesses are going up next year.

The average residential taxpayer will be paying 7.5% more in 2020 than in 2019, but the full tax increase is actually 9%, with a one-time rebate of 1.5% being provided for 2020 only.

Business taxes, on the other hand, could go up as much as 18%, depending on the type of business and where they are located.

So, what caused this tax increase?

Last week our team watched the entire Calgary Council Budget meeting - more than 40 hours worth - so that you didn't have to!

We were the only non-profit that tweeted live updates and provided analysis of the whole week's worth of debate as the meeting progressed.

Overall, we provided more in-depth coverage than all the local media combined, and we did all of this so that you can stay informed about what's happening at City Hall.

A lot of votes took place last week that resulted in your life getting more expensive - we've broken them down into three categories:

1. Votes that would reduce spending and reduce the tax increase.
2. Votes that would increase spending and increase the tax increase.
3. The tax-shift vote that increased residential taxes by a further 6.8%.

To see how your Councillor voted, along with a more detailed breakdown of the votes of the Mayor and all Councillors, scroll down.

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