Mayor O’Brien pleased with new-look budget
For immediate release
July 8,2008
Mayor O’Brien pleased with new-look budget
Ottawa- The 2009 City budget will look very different if Council accepts a consultant’s proposed changes.
Tomorrow Bob Plamondon will present the recommendations from work he has done, at the request of City Manager Kent Kirkpatrick, to improve the budget document to City Council.
“If accepted, these changes will make the City budget more relevant, effective and useful,” said Mayor Larry O’Brien. “Councillors will have more data at their fingertips in a format that is understandable and comprehensive.”
The redesigned budget would provide all of the existing data and is expected to reduce the 1,000 page budget document the City produced in 2008 by two-thirds. The proposed budget format is based on analysis of other municipalities and would allow for a more thorough review of the City’s expenses, revenue and capital projects.
“The current budget format hinders an effective review of City finances,” said Mayor O’Brien. “The “new-look” budget won’t make difficult decisions for us, but it would go a long way in giving us the data we need to get a handle on City spending.”
As part of the work requested by Kent Kirkpatrick, Plamondon also outlined the proposed Budget Challenge Working Group. This group of three Councillors and senior City staff would review the draft budget prior to it being tabled. Their mandate would be to question staff and issue a report on the budget estimates.
“These two key components of this year’s budget will allow us to have a more thoughtful debate and this is a major step in transforming the City’s financial accountability and budgeting,” said Mayor O’Brien “I am pleased with the work commissioned by the City Manager and look forward to these changes”
The final budget template will go to Corporate Services and Economic Development Committee on August 19 and to City Council on August 28.
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July 23rd, 2008 at 2:57 pm
[…] year we will actually see a new budget format that the average individual will be able to […]
September 16th, 2008 at 10:35 am
I am a supporter of making processes (especially administrative) more simple, and am glad to hear of a new budjet outline that will be shorter and to the point. I hope that this new look will allow the proper amounts of money to be distributed to the areas that actually need it, such as hydro, water and sewer, and road construction. In my opinion, all levels of government are responsible for giving its residents all of the basic necessities needed to fully enjoy life (ie. Transit, health care, and the already above mentioned services). Furthermore, after reading the information about the Police Force, it is nice to hear that Ottawa is a safer community. There is no reason for overspending, and I hope that this new budget format will assist you in your endeavors.