Budget process starting up at City Hall

The process of preparing for the 2016 budget is just getting underway at City Hall in North Battleford.

City Finance Director David Gillan updated council on the expected timeline for the budget process at the city’s Planning Committee meeting Monday.

Directors of the various departments are completing their budget templates and a first draft of numbers was to be done in late September or early October for the city manager’s review. Internal one-on-one meetings were to follow in October with the various directors.  

Throughout November, administration will put together the official budget document. The draft will be reviewed internally by administration in the last week of November and Gillan indicated the budget will be presented to the full council Dec. 2.

The plan is for budget deliberations to happen Dec. 7 to 11 with final approval by council at the Dec. 14 meeting.

Gillan informed council he sees one evening of the deliberations being devoted to grant presentations by external organizations, with the other two or three nights of deliberations devoted to the City’s departments.

There is also to be discussion of the underground pipes and roads work plans, with City Manager Jim Puffalt indicating specific streets will be presented to council during deliberations.