After weeks of deliberations and hearing multiple requests to reduce the tax burden, Jasper Municipal Council has passed its 2026 operational and capital budgets.

Council managed to trim $150,000 from its interim budget and will use $149,000 from the fixed asset reserve to mitigate the Municipality of Jasper’s tax requisition increase. The reductions were arrived at during budget discussions on Tuesday (Dec. 16).

The proposed budget had called for a 9.42 per cent tax increase, equating to an extra $1.1 million to the requisition. However, after Tuesday’s session, the amendments reduced the tax hike to roughly seven per cent. Council approved the operating and capital budget unanimously, with Coun. Kable Kongsrud absent from the meeting.

“We did make a significant cut to the budget, and that makes for a very worthwhile day, even though it’s been a long day,” said Mayor Richard Ireland.

One such cut was reducing the town’s transfers to reserves by $100,000, so in 2026 the Municipality will only be putting away $93,000 for long-term infrastructure needs. Coun. Ralph Melnyk, who made the motion, noted this was preferable to cutting operational spending, which could impede the community’s recovery.

“We’re maintaining the pace of how quickly we can recover and potentially there may be savings in being able to recover more quickly,” he said. “It’s a bit of gamble of not putting money in the bank for tomorrow’s rainy day.”

Coun. Laurie Rodger agreed with the motion but questioned if Jasper was funding too many services. He questioned the long-term viability of Jasper’s transit service and the new urban design and standards department.

“Long term, we’re going to have to make some decisions on whether we can afford these things,” Rodger said. “Maybe we have to decide something more drastic than moving money out of going to reserves.”

Melnyk replied the Municipality had contractual obligations for transit services in 2026, but council could reexamine this service for future years.

In addition, council decided 5-1 to decrease the proposed $100,000 for development planning contract services to $50,000. The other $50,000 will be considered for the 2027 budget.

Beth Sanders, director of urban design and standards, said the line item would fund support for staff to acquire the expertise and advice on how to best issue building permits, when the town eventually takes over land-use authority. Cuts, she said, may delay further the transfer of land-use authority from Parks Canada to the Municipality—a step which is at least 18 months away, council heard.

Coun. Danny Frechette spoke against the proposed cut, saying this transfer has been a popular demand for years and will give Jasper more autonomy.

“On many levels, this is something that’s going to pay dividends down the road,” Frechette said. “I think I can say fairly confidently that our community is ready to round the corner and take more responsibility.”

Coun. Wendy Hall, the lone opposing vote, suggested not funding this item in 2026 if this transfer of authority wasn’t going to happen for at least 18 months.

Rodger said he would need to see a budget projection for this department before approving the $100,000, which council is expected to receive next year.

Rodger also suggested moving the capital expenditures for the Aquatic Centre to “unfunded” until council could get more information next year. This motion passed unanimously. Programming increase at the Aquatics Centre remained untouched, since program revenue would offset the cost.

Council also added $10,000 in financial and gift in-kind support for the Jasper Pride Festival Society. This is on top of $250,000 for 11 other community groups which requested support, plus $218,000 for the Jasper Municipal Library.

More budget details provided amid criticism

The Jasper Park Chamber of Commerce presented to council last week. The Chamber was calling for more budget transparency and noted a 61 per cent increase in the tax requisition over the past five years. This week’s meeting had four separate delegations with similar concerns.

“Clarity in budgeting is essential for good governance,” said Val Glaves. “If I find this budget confusing as a CPA [Chartered Professional Accountant], I can’t imagine what it looks like for a new councillor.”

Among her concerns, Glaves criticized moving revenue between departments, such as paid parking revenue being shown as income for transit.

“This is not a standard practice in municipal or corporate accounting,” she said. “And why? Because revenue attribution should reflect the activity that earns it. Moving it distorts cost recovery and misleads the council into thinking transit is self-sustaining.”

Shelley Koebel, a local business owner, explained how Jasper was still recovering from the 2024 wildfire in an uncertain time while recent tax increases put “sustained pressure on business stability and by extension the tax base that supports municipal services.”

“What makes it harder is how the town choosing to spend during this period,” Koebel said, noting the transit expansion and the urban design and standards department.

CAO Bill Given told council while the budget shows a $9.1-million increase in expenditures, reflecting ongoing recovery efforts, “these expenses are largely funded by external sources.”

At the request of council, administration provided additional information related to the budget. The information package indicated that inflation was the main driver behind the tax increase, while service level enhancements contributed only a small portion.

Inflation-related impacts included $446,500 in salary and benefit costs, $148,000 in contracted services including utilities and insurance and $100,000 in materials and supplies. The budget also includes $223,000 in debt payments for past upgrades to the recreation facilities.

Peter Shokeir // info@thejasperlocal.com