City of Surrey releases Draft 2024-2028 General Operating and Capital Budgets

Surrey, B.C. – The City of Surrey’s 2024-2028 General Operating and Capital Budgets are now available for the public to view. The 2024 Budgets have been formulated based on direction from Mayor and Council, reflecting City strategies, resource requirements to maintain service delivery and feedback on community priorities obtained during the City’s budget engagement process.

“I am pleased to present a forward-thinking budget that considers the needs of our ever-growing population while being mindful of the financial stresses our residents face during these times of inflation,” said Mayor Brenda Locke. “We have been prudent and kept costs as low as we possibly could. New revenues have helped but we have also chosen not to pursue other spending priorities. The fact is, Surrey Police Service is eating into our ability to deliver new projects. However, our focus has always been Surrey residents and we will provide our citizens with the improvement and amenities they deserve. This Budget includes a set amount for policing that is predicated on an authorized strength of a minimum of 785 officers to ensure funding is in place for adequate and effective policing for Surrey. This is the largest policing operations budget in the history of the City.

“This Council has resolved to stay with the Surrey RCMP. If we are mandated to continue with the police transition, we are facing an increased cost of half a billion dollars or more over the next decade, compared to the costs of the Surrey RCMP,” added Locke. “The 2024 Budget also does not include a variety of anticipated but unknown costs if we were to continue with the Surrey Police Service. For example, two-person vehicles are mandated in the SPS contract. The Vancouver Police Department has this same practice, and they have more than 1,400 sworn officers. The SPS would require well over 1,000 officers to put this into practice in place, a massive increase from 785 in the Budget. This would translate to a significant cost increase to taxpayers with no net benefit to public safety. As well, the budget does not include indemnification costs we would face switching to the SPS, as the federal government currently bears these costs with RCMP. These implications would need to be addressed in future budget cycles, along with any unforeseen costs, considering the Surrey Police Service exceeded its budget by more than $22 million in 2023.

“Times are tough and I will not artificially inflate taxes when families are struggling to pay for mortgages, rent, food, and other essential expenses,” stressed Locke. “My priority is meeting the needs of our residents while being as fiscally prudent as possible. It is essential we create a thriving, liveable city for both present and future generations.”

The property tax increases proposed in the 2024 General Operating Budget are as follows:

• 6% General Property Tax increase (approximately $152 for the average single-family home) to fund:
  • General inflationary pressures
  • Hiring of additional 26 police officers, 20 firefighters and 10 bylaw officers for 2024
  • City-wide operations
• 1% Roads and Traffic Levy (approximately $25 for the average single-family home)

If the proposed increases are approved, the City’s portion of property taxes for the average assessed single family home in the City of Surrey would be $3,084, which would place Surrey in the middle for property taxes collected for the respective average assessed home in Metro Vancouver.

A public meeting of the Finance Committee will be held April 22 at 1pm to consider the 2024 Budget. The public can provide comments in person at the Finance Committee meeting or through written submissions (email clerks@surrey.ca or fill out an online form). The deadline for written comments is noon on Friday, April 19, 2024.

The Draft 2024 Budgets and Five-Year Plan can be found here.