Building Whitby's Budget
Engagement is an important part of the Town’s annual budget process, helping the Town to understand the community’s priorities to meet your needs and expectations.
This year, feedback collected through the 2026 Budget Survey and earlier development of the Whitby Community Strategic Plan will help the Town to determine which projects and services to prioritize as multi-year budget projections are refined and finalized through the 2026 Budget process. New budget pressures – such as the impact of U.S. imposed tariffs and retaliatory tariffs, and new legislation – will also be considered.
Share Your Budget Priorities
As an important part of the budget process, residents are invited to share their feedback on the proposed budget. Here are some ways to get involved:
- NOW COMPLETE - Phase One – Online Survey (June 9 to 27)
Residents were invited to complete a short survey to share what services and projects matter most to them. - The results:
- Value for Taxes: The majority of participants (59%) feel they receive good or very good value for their tax dollars.
- Spending Priorities: When asked to rank a list of possible priorities for more investment, the top response (48%) was to keep taxes low with no additional investment. The next highest priorities were supporting more local jobs, improving the waterfront, and revitalizing the downtowns.
- Tax Preferences: Nearly half of respondents (49%) indicated a preference for paying less tax, even if it means a reduction in Town services.
- Learning Opportunity: More than half of participants (51%) reported learning something new through the budget survey process.
Additional opportunities to share feedback on the proposed Budget will be available later this year.
MORE INFORMATION
Stay informed on upcoming budget engagement opportunities. Subscribe to receive email updates (submit your email in the STAY INFORMED box).
Additional Budget Information
Last year, the Town moved to a multi-year Budget, projecting a 1.4 per cent and 1.5 per cent property tax increase on the total residential bill for Town essential services in 2026 and 2027 respectively.
Multi-year budgeting helps to better position the municipality to continue to implement the action items of the Whitby Community Strategic Plan and focus on four main goals:
- Service delivery enhancements and additions as supported by the Community Strategic Plan
- Support for existing programs and services
- Operating funding to support new capital assets
- Continued increased investment in infrastructure renewal
This approach helps the Town plan investments to meet its service delivery requirements as Whitby continues to grow – so community feedback matters more than ever.
You can also learn more about how how taxes are calculated in Whitby.
How the Budget Process Works
Each year, the Town undergoes a robust process to create an annual budget that delivers the services and programs residents and businesses rely on each day.
Check out the below videos to learn more about how your tax dollars are spent and how municipal budget decisions are made:
- How Whitby's Municipal Budget Works - learn more about how a municipal budget is put together, including the Town's operating and capital budgets
- Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC) 101 - learn more about how your property tax is calculated
For more information on how Whitby uses Development Charges (DCs) to help manage the cost of growth, visit the Development Charge Background Study page on Connect Whitby.
Your property taxes fund services provided by the Town of Whitby, Region of Durham, and School Boards. For a home assessed at $503,000, annual property taxes of $6,700 are allocated as follows:
Have a question about the Town’s budget? Email budget@whitby.ca.
