City committee votes to provide Saskatoon budget update next week

Saskatoon's governanceand priorities committee have decidedto release a city budget update next Monday.

Charlie Clark, a city councillor vying to be the city's mayor, putthemotion before the committee to have next year's budget released before October's election.

He and two other mayoral candidates Kelley Moore and HenryDayday asked city administration to release its preliminary budget before the election, saying it contains vital information for voters.

• Saskatoon Mayor Don Atchison says budget might not be ready before fall election

In April, council passed a resolution unanimously that the 2017 budget for the city would not be tabled until after the Oct. 26 vote.

"The implications of the reportindicating that there would be no real budget update or information leading up to the electionwas not clear," Clark explained.

"I didn't really think through the implications of that budget report when we received it in April and I think sometimes when you recognize that you're on the wrong path, it's good to make changes to improve the process."

Although the budget won't be ready before the fall election, according to Clark, the committee has also decided to push the budget's release to an earlier date from Nov. 21 to Nov. 7.

Clark said he's happywith this decision because it will give the public a general idea of what some of the expenditures and revenues will be, and what programs will be considered.

"The more transparent you can be as a council, the more you can build confidence in council decisions and that's good governance."

The budget update will take place on Sept. 19 justbefore the city council meeting.