Ottawa Mayor Larry O'Brien and city councillors say they're getting an earful from local taxpayers who don't want to pay a special $50 snow tax.
"One way or another, we're going to have to pay for this $23 million cost overrun for snowplowing," O'Brien told reporters Wednesday.
"We have to deal with it before we finalize this year's tax rate," he said.
O'Brien is recommending the one-time levy to cover a projected budget shortfall of $23 million. Ottawa has spent $25 million on snow removal this month alone.
No snow money in reserve fund
"There's not a lot of money in the reserve fund for snowplowing," O'Brien said.
That's because the city's reserve funds for snow removal were depleted after decisions made by city council during budget deliberations.
The mayor says there are alternatives to the proposed snow levy but those alternatives could include cutting other city services.
Despite opposition from taxpayers, O'Brien says imposing a surcharge is the responsible thing to do.
"I am a financial fiscal conservative and I like to pay the bills when they come in," O'Brien said.
Opposition to the snow tax
But not everyone agrees with the mayor's proposal.
City councillor Maria McRae told CTV News she's not in favour of the snow surcharge "right now."
McRae says council needs to pursue other options before committing to a snow tax.
Taxpayers are also speaking out about the issue, asking city council why they should pay for the city's lack of foresight for this year's budget.
Mayor didn't discuss issue with council
The mayor announced the proposed snow tax without discussing the issue with councillors and says he has no regrets about that decision.
O'Brien told reporters his job is to address issues, not hide behind them.
Although he didn't speak to councillors before alerting the media about the budget shortfall on Tuesday, O'Brien said he did speak to the city manager, city treasurer and a member of the city's surface operations team.
The transportation committee discussed the mayor's proposal for a snow surcharge to help deal with snow removal costs at a meeting Wednesday morning.
City workers still working to clear snow
During the meeting, the committee also moved a motion to compliment city workers who have been working continuously to remove snow from city streets and sidewalks after the latest winter storm hit the Capital March 8.
Surface operations manager John Manconi says city crews are still working to clear Ottawa streets.
"We're doing road widening," said Manconi, who added residents should be cautious when driving on city streets that have high snowbanks.
The snow tax will go to Ottawa city council next week.
Do you have an opinion on the proposed snow surcharge? Have your say by leaving a comment below and voting in our online poll.
