NRRM draft budget complete, open house consultation scheduled for this week

FORT NELSON, B.C. — Northern Rockies residents are being invited to share their thoughts on the regional municipality’s draft budget at an upcoming open house event.

According to the Northern Rockies Regional Municipality’s (NRRM) budget web page, the draft budget for 2025 is now complete.

Reportedly, the goal of this year’s budget is to maintain service levels comparable to 2024, rather than to significantly expand services. 

As such, the municipal services portion of the 2025 draft budget is only two per cent higher than in 2024.

In terms of the budget’s impact on taxes, every $100,000 approved in the budget means residents pay an extra roughly $1.83 per $100,000 in their assessed property value on their property tax bill.

That means, if the draft budget is approved without further changes, the owners of what the NRRM calls a “typical house,” valued at $248,961, will pay $3,031 in property taxes for 2025 – $175 more than what the owners of a “typical house” paid in 2024.

This year’s budget also benefits from an increase in the amount of Infrastructure Development Contribution Agreement (IDCA) funding going towards the NRRM from the provincial government.

The province shares IDCA funding with municipalities every year to help offset the costs of infrastructure renewal and repair. For the next five years, the NRRM is set to receive $6.69 million annually in IDCA funding.

Other highlights from the draft budget include $500,000 set aside for wildfire risk mitigation and $904,000 set aside for community grants, the same amount as in 2024.

In order to collect feedback on the budget proposal from residents, the municipality is hosting a public open house on Tuesday, April 8th at the NRRM Community Hall at the Recreation Centre from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

The event is free to attend and doesn’t require pre-registration.