City Administration presents 2026/2027 financial forecast to deliver essential, affordable services
The City Administration will present its 2026 and 2027 Preliminary Financial Forecast to the Governance and Priorities Committee on June 11, 2025, amid ongoing inflation, rapid population growth and planned service enhancements.
“We’re sharing these early forecasts to be transparent about the financial realities facing the City," says Clae Hack, Chief Financial Officer. "While we’re confident these early forecasts won’t reflect the final 2026/2027 budget, they do provide important context around the City’s financial needs as we begin building additional scenarios for City Council to consider during its final budget deliberations this November."
Preliminary forecasts estimate a 4.4 per cent and 3.9 per cent increase in the civic operating budget, which excludes police, to cover inflation and growth for existing City services in 2026 and 2027. An additional 1.5 per cent and 1.8 per cent increase in 2026 and 2027 are dedicated to improving infrastructure maintenance and supporting major projects such as the Link Bus Rapid Transit system, future East Side Leisure Centre, and two new fire halls in the civic operating budget.
The Saskatoon Police Service’s operating budget is also facing expenditure pressures with projected increases of 10.4 per cent in 2026 and 6.4 per cent in 2027 over its existing budget.
“We continue to work diligently to identify cost savings and efficiencies as highlighted in recent independent audits and in the City’s annual 2024 Service, Savings and Sustainability Report while preserving service levels residents expect." Hack says. “During our internal review, we reduced future discretionary budget expenditures by over $9 million in 2026 alone.”
City revenues are projected to grow by about 3.5 per cent in 2026 and 4.1 per cent in 2027, mainly from increases in Saskatchewan’s Municipal Revenue Sharing Grant and the City’s general revenues. While they help reduce the overall property tax requirements for each year, they fall short of expenditure needs.
Current forecasts estimate projected property tax increases of about $22 per month or 9.9 per cent in 2026 and about $18 per month or 7.3 per cent in 2027 for an average assessed home value of $397,000, with over one-third of the increase attributed to the Saskatoon Police Service.
The Committee report proposes that the Administration continue its efforts to reduce the forecasted property tax increases by at least one percentage point each year. In addition, the Administration will work on preparing alternative scenarios for City Council to consider during its final budget deliberations in November 2025 to further reduce the budget and property tax impact.
The City of Saskatoon remains committed to fiscal responsibility and transparency while meeting the needs of a growing Saskatoon.
To learn more:
watch this brief video, it provides an overview of the key factors the City analyzed to build out the Preliminary 2026 and 2027 Financial Forecast;
look through the June 4, 2025, CFO 2027/2027 Preliminary Financial Forecast PowerPoint Presentation to Media
review the At a Glance Info Sheet on the Preliminary 2026/2027 Financial Forecast; and
find more information on the 2026/2027 budget process on the City's website at saskatoon.ca/budget.