ATHABASCA – Athabasca County is headed into another fiscal year with a clean bill of financial health and some extra money in the bank account, according to a presentation from its auditor.
Jeff Alliston, a CPA with Metrix Group, gave councillors an in-depth breakdown of the municipality's financials as part of his yearly presentation. Municipal governments are required to under an audit every year as part of the Municipal Government Act.
Athabasca County grew its accumulated surplus — the accounting term for the value of the municipality's financial and non-financial assets — by around $9 million, thanks in part to a $7 million increase in cash and temporary investments. In total, the county has roughly $120 million in assets that are documented as part of the audit, plus liabilities.
“I’m pretty happy to see those bottom line figures that allow us to be in that good to shape,” said Reeve Tracy Holland.
While that doesn’t mean the county has an extra $7 million lying around, it does demonstrate prudent planning and financial growth, something councillors were thankful for.
“A lot of this can really be attributed to how well administration does their budgeting. We put our wishes and our wants forward and they do the work to make the magic happen,” said Holland.
“To me, (the surplus) reflects really good fiscal management and careful fiscal management.”
The county brought in an additional $2 million in municipal taxes in 2024 compared to 2023, and its investment income came in at double the expected amount, with the municipality earning $2 million in 2024.
Heading into the last year of their term, county councillors have continued to avoid accruing any debt. Under the MGA, municipalities have a debt limit, as well as a limit on how much they can spend each year paying that debt off, but barring any changes, the upcoming council won’t be paying for today’s decisions.
“It takes prudent budgeting for sure, and it takes very careful fiscal management on everyone’s part,” said Holland.
“We have a huge slate ahead of us in the county, and in the new term coming up there will be some very difficult decisions that will have to be made, but we’re in a position where we are able to bring those plans forward, and I think that’s an amazing thing.”
In total, Athabasca County could have up to $58.9 million in debt, with $9.8 million a year in payments.
