City of Windsor launches public engagement tools ahead of 2024 budget process

The City of Windsor is again launching public engagement tools to help inform the public and get feedback on the upcoming 2024 budget cycle.

City officials said in a news release, the tools are similar to those offered last year to help residents better understand how their tax dollars are spent, to identify and prioritize capital investments, and to provide this feedback in advance of the City’s 2024 budget process.

The first tool, ‘Prioritize,’ allows residents the opportunity to offer input on setting priorities within the upcoming 10-year capital plan. Users can select the capital investment areas that are important to them and rank their performances.

This data offers deeper insight into residents’ priorities as they relate to capital funding and corporate initiatives.

The ‘Tax Receipt Generator’ allows residents to input their 2023 property taxes and generate a receipt that shows an estimated breakdown of how their tax dollars are currently spent.

The ‘Budget Balancing Simulation’ allows residents to adjust how their tax dollars could be spent by increasing, decreasing or maintaining spending for a number of city services to a maximum of 10 per cent. Once users confirm their adjustments, a coloured pie chart is updated to reflect the percentage of spending on each service.

“These engagement tools help engage residents in setting funding levels for City services and provide information on where their property taxes are being spent,” said Janice Guthrie, commissioner corporate services, CFO/City Treasurer. “As we plan for the 2024 budget cycle, this is an excellent opportunity for residents to let us know what their spending priorities are.”

Rollout of these tools comes in preparation for city council’s upcoming ward meetings.