Sources and method

Where this comes from

Everything on these pages comes from public documents. Here they are, with how we used them, so anyone can check our work.

Documents

1. Ontario Financial Information Return (FIR)

   Ontario Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing · retrieved 2026-10-01

   The numbers behind the money and compare pages: 2019 to 2025 for Aurora, and 2025 for 10 similar towns. Figures are what the municipality reported to the Province for each year, prepared on the same basis as its audited financial statements.

2. Town of Aurora, council remuneration and expense statements

   Town of Aurora · retrieved 2026-10-05

   What each council member was paid, and spent on benefits and expenses, 2024 to 2025. One statement a year; the link is the latest, and the council page links each year.

3. Town of Aurora, budget documents

   Town of Aurora · retrieved 2026-10-01

   The town’s published budgets. Used to check its plans against what it reported.

4. The Corporation of the Town of Aurora, Consolidated Financial Statements, December 31, 2025 (KPMG LLP, June 23, 2026)

   Town of Aurora (auditor: KPMG LLP) · retrieved 2026-10-05

   Audited statements for 2025 with 2024 beside them. Clean opinion. 48 PDF pages. Amounts are in thousands of dollars.

5. 2026 Budget, Tab 01 Executive Summary (as adopted December 7, 2025)

   Town of Aurora · retrieved 2026-10-05

   The Mayor's message, the 2.2 percent levy increase and the 10-year capital plan overview.

6. 2026 Budget, Tab 03 Operating Budget (as adopted December 7, 2025)

   Town of Aurora · retrieved 2026-10-05

   Operating budget summary, non-tax revenue, water rates and staffing.

7. 2026 Budget, Tab 05 Reserves and Debt Management (as adopted December 7, 2025)

   Town of Aurora · retrieved 2026-10-05

   Ten-year reserve forecast, development charges and debt.

8. 2026 Budget, Tab 06 Mayor and Council (as adopted December 7, 2025)

   Town of Aurora · retrieved 2026-10-05

   The Mayor and Council operating budget and what changed.

9. 2026 Budget, Tab 11 Operational Services (as adopted December 7, 2025)

   Town of Aurora · retrieved 2026-10-05

   Roads, snow, waste, parks, water and the changes to each budget line.

10. 2026 Budget, Tab 13 Corporate Items (as adopted December 7, 2025)

    Town of Aurora · retrieved 2026-10-05

    Reserve contributions, the investment income line and tax penalties.

11. Statement of Remuneration and Expenses, Paid to Elected Members January to December, 2025 (March 10, 2026)

    Town of Aurora, Director of Finance · retrieved 2026-10-05

    The Municipal Act s. 284 statement for 2025.

12. Statement of Remuneration and Expenses, Paid to Elected Members January to December, 2024 (March 4, 2025)

    Town of Aurora, Director of Finance · retrieved 2026-10-05

    The Municipal Act s. 284 statement for 2024.

13. Information Report CS23-042: Integrity Commissioner's Periodic Report (July 4, 2023)

    Town of Aurora (report by Principles Integrity) · retrieved 2026-10-05

    Integrity Commissioner activity from January 2021 to May 31, 2023.

14. Declaration of Interest Registry

    Town of Aurora · retrieved 2026-10-05

    The public table of declared pecuniary interests, 2018 to 2026.

15. Statistics Canada, Consumer Price Index, annual average (table 18-10-0005-01)

    Statistics Canada · retrieved 2026-10-01

    How much prices went up each year, so cost growth can be compared with inflation.

How the numbers are worked out

Day-to-day spending

Total expenses as reported, minus amortization ("wear and tear"), which is an accounting cost rather than cash spent that year. Costs are shown in the service where they were recorded, before the town spreads its office overhead across services, so the cost of running the office stays visible.

Per home

An amount divided by the number of households the town reported to the Province for that year.

Similar towns

Ontario lower-tier municipalities with 60% to 160% of this population that had filed their 2025 return, in 2025. This gives 10 towns. "Typical" means the median: half of similar towns are above it and half below. The size limits are a judgement call; moving them a little adds or drops a few towns, so treat small differences in rank as noise. Per-home figures use the household counts each town reports to the Province. Towns do not all count the same way: some include seasonal homes, so per-home comparisons are a guide, not exact.

Faster than prices

Growth is compared with Canada's Consumer Price Index over the same years.

When a question is raised automatically

When a cost grew at least 25 percentage points faster than prices and faster than 80% of similar towns; when a measure of money health is worse than 80% of similar towns; or when a one-year tax increase is higher than 80% of similar towns and well above inflation. "Needs an answer" means worse than 90% of similar towns. When there are fewer than 20 similar towns, automatic questions go no higher than "Worth asking", because one rank moves a lot in a small group.

What this cannot see

These records show totals by category, not individual payments. They cannot show whether a particular contract was fair, whether a purchase was split to avoid tendering, or who was paid. That needs the town's list of payments (its cheque register or accounts payable list), which residents can ask for under Ontario's freedom-of-information law (MFIPPA). That is the next thing we plan to add.