The city will be releasing a detailed 2026 budget on October 24th, 2025, and our council will vote to pass the budget on December 2nd, 2025.
Focus Burlington, a group of volunteers, is conducting a survey on the 2026 budget. We don’t have all the budget details, but the city has released enough information to make a survey worthwhile.
Historically, politicians seem compelled to respond when there is significant resident feedback.
Please complete our survey and add your voice:
During the in-person budget Town Halls, the Mayor showed us a dot chart from the Food for Feedback event and pointed out that residents want to increase or maintain services.
We’re asking for your feedback because we’re really not sure how valid this is. I attended Food for Feedback, and there’s no residency requirement; anyone from anywhere can show up for free food truck food and stick dots on the board. Anyone can place as many dots as they want to.
What is our survey showing so far?
Budgets are about money. It might be fair to say we all want increased services, as long as someone else is paying for them.
We’re asking, “The July 2025 inflation rate was 1.7%. Burlington’s proposed budget increase is 5.8% or more than 3 times the rate of inflation. With this in mind, should Burlington…”
The survey results to date indicate the vast majority of us want to find a way to maintain services with a reasonable tax increase.
We’re asking about support for a proposed new Art Gallery with an estimated cost of $116 million. Respondents, to date, overwhelmingly voted no.
We’re asking, “Are the taxation and debt levels sustainable? Since 2022, and including the proposed 5.8% increase for 2026, the cumulative property tax revenue increase is 46.81% (Burlington only). Between 2022 and 2024, long-term debt for the City of Burlington increased by 54% or $40,574,000.”
To date, over 60% of respondents voted ‘stop’; over 27% voted for a ‘pause’.
Property tax payments and housing affordability are closely linked. The most recent income data available, from the CRA, is for 2023. Here’s how incomes look in Burlington.
The data also shows us that 32% of Burlington tax filers report pension income and 15% collect means-tested payments for basic needs like food, clothing, and shelter.
The tax revenue increase percentage and the debt levels come from the city’s financial statements. For clarity, the Burlington line on our tax bill will “only” increase 44.9% (2022 to 2026). The 46.81% number used in the survey question is based on total tax revenue collected for Burlington (not Halton or Education) and is higher than the tax increase on our bills because new homes and condos add to the revenue collected.
Someone commented on this question that we need to consult a data scientist. Anyone, including data scientists, can volunteer to help Focus Burlington. Please click here to contact us: https://www.focusburlington.ca/contact-us/
Does the city need a data scientist, or do they already have one?
Unlike the city, we’re asking, “Should the city increase, maintain, or decrease spending on the following specific items?”
- Traffic/pedestrian safety
- Traffic management
- Bike Lanes/Cycling facilities
- Street/road maintenance.
Our survey results, to date, show that traffic management is the only area where the majority of respondents indicate the city should be increasing spending.:
The city survey lumps bike lanes, road conditions, and traffic flow together into one question, forcing votes for improved traffic flow also to be counted as votes for bike lanes.
We ask about specific programs:
50% of respondents like the fireworks on Canada Day ($25,000+)
14.3% like the drone display on Canada Day ($25,000+)
23.2% like Burlington Green Funding ($60,000+)
30.4% like the Association of Ontario Municipalities membership fee ($21,000+)
Someone asked for a more comprehensive list. I wish one were available, and please ask your councillor for a list. Detailed information on program costs and membership fees is not in the budget. We used other reports that the city makes available to the public.
Thank you to everyone who has contributed, and if you haven’t, have your say and add your comments by completing the survey using the link here:
https://www.focusburlington.ca/2026-budget-survey/
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Dog owners would appreciate it if you cut the loud fireworks displays.
I only voted against the art gallery because we already have one.
Bike lanes need to be placed between the sidewalk and the curb. Bike lanes on the road are too dangerous for cyclists. If they must be on the road, erect barriers to prevent cars from hitting us.
And please for the love of God stop building more condos, especially downtown. Build affordable housing and low-income housing. There are any number of mansions on Lakeshore that could be converted into apartments.