Not the full picture. Built from public records, which leave things out.Read by hand, Oct 2026Details

This is built from public records, which leave a lot out, and some of it may be wrong or out of date. Check the sources, and tell us if you spot a mistake. What this site can't tell you
Read by hand. We read Carlow-Mayo's own documents for this site in October 2026; the Sources page lists which ones. The comparisons with other places still come from the Province's yearly reports.

The money · 2025

How Carlow-Mayo's money works

A town is a bit like a household. Money comes in (mostly taxes and grants), and money goes out to pay for services like roads, fire trucks and the arena. Here is what that looked like in 2025, the latest year the town has reported to the Province.

Why 2025 and not this year? A budget is a plan. These figures are what actually happened, checked by an auditor and reported to Ontario.

Money in: $2.8M

Where the town's money came from in 2025.

58%

17%

13%

Property taxes$1.6M58%
Money from Ontario (no strings)$470K17%
Grants for specific projects$355K13%
Other$237K8%
Everything else$114K4%

Show as a table

Category	Amount	Share
Property taxes	$1,649,391	58.4%
Money from Ontario (no strings)	$470,300	16.6%
Grants for specific projects	$355,317	12.6%
Other	$236,983	8.4%
Everything else	$114,190	4.0%
Total	$2,826,181	100%

What each source means

Property taxes: What home and business owners pay each year, based on what their property is worth.
Money from Ontario (no strings): A yearly grant from the Province that the town can spend on anything. Small rural towns get more.
Grants for specific projects: Money from Ontario or Canada that must be spent on a certain thing, often a road or building.
Other: Interest earned, donations, sales of land and equipment.

Money out: $2.6M on services

Day-to-day spending in 2025, by service. On top of this, the town recorded $549K of "wear and tear" on things it owns. That is an accounting cost, not cash out the door, so it is left out here.

21%

14%

50%

11%

Running the town office$531K21%
Police, fire and safety$366K14%
Roads and snow$1.3M50%
Water, sewers and garbage$276K11%
Parks, arena and library$126K5%

Show as a table

Category	Amount	Share
Running the town office	$530,987	20.6%
Police, fire and safety	$366,102	14.2%
Roads and snow	$1,278,815	49.6%
Water, sewers and garbage	$275,563	10.7%
Parks, arena and library	$125,774	4.9%
Total	$2,577,241	100%

Roads and snow

$1.3M

Fixing and paving roads, bridges and culverts, ploughing snow, and street lights.

+101% since 2019 (prices rose 21%)

Gravel roads$1.2M+121%
Grading and fixing gravel roads.
Snow ploughing$73,123−7%
Ploughing, salting and sanding roads in winter.
Paved roads$16,976
Fixing and repaving paved roads.
Bridges and culverts$12,126
Keeping bridges and the pipes under roads safe.

Show as a table

Item	Amount	Change
Gravel roads	$1,176,590	+120.5%
Snow ploughing	$73,123	−6.7%
Paved roads	$16,976	–
Bridges and culverts	$12,126	–

Running the town office

$531K

Council, managers, the clerk, accounting, computers, insurance and the town hall itself. Every town needs some of this, but it does not fix a road or put out a fire.

+33% since 2019 (prices rose 21%)

Office and administration$435K+37%
Office staff, finance, IT, insurance, legal and the town hall. Towns share this cost out across other services.
Senior management$61,977+19%
The top managers who run the town day to day.
Council$33,837+14%
Pay and expenses for the mayor and councillors, and council meetings.

Show as a table

Item	Amount	Change
Office and administration	$435,173	+36.6%
Senior management	$61,977	+19.5%
Council	$33,837	+13.8%

Police, fire and safety

$366K

Paying for police, the fire department, building inspectors and by-law officers.

+56% since 2019 (prices rose 21%)

Police (OPP contract)$199K+8%
What the town pays for policing.
Fire department$106K+258%
Firefighters, trucks and fire halls.
By-law and animal control$60,810
Enforcing town rules, like noise, parking and dogs.

Show as a table

Item	Amount	Change
Police (OPP contract)	$199,439	+8.1%
Fire department	$105,853	+258.0%
By-law and animal control	$60,810	–

Water, sewers and garbage

$276K

Clean tap water, the sewer system, garbage pickup, the dump and recycling.

+10% since 2019 (prices rose 21%)

The dump (landfill)$275K+30%
Running the landfill, and saving up to close it safely one day.
Recycling$611−98%
Recycling and composting.

Show as a table

Item	Amount	Change
The dump (landfill)	$274,952	+29.9%
Recycling	$611	−98.5%

Parks, arena and library

$126K

Parks, the arena, the pool, sports fields, programs and the library.

+15% since 2019 (prices rose 21%)

Arena and buildings$94,299+14%
The arena, pool, community centre and halls.
Library$25,319
The public library.
Parks$6,156
Parks, beaches, trails and green spaces.

Show as a table

Item	Amount	Change
Arena and buildings	$94,299	+14.4%
Library	$25,319	–
Parks	$6,156	–

What the money bought

The same 2025 spending, sorted by what it paid for rather than which service.

Supplies and utilities$1.2M
Gravel, salt, fuel, electricity, heating, office supplies and repairs.
Staff pay and benefits$859K
Wages, benefits and pensions for town workers.
Outside companies$317K
Work the town pays other companies to do, like policing, paving or consultants.
Rent and money costs$118K
Renting equipment or space, bank fees, and some accounting costs.
Money given to others$46,243
Grants and payments to other groups, like the conservation authority.

Show as a table

Item	Amount
Supplies and utilities	$1,236,474
Staff pay and benefits	$858,845
Outside companies	$317,379
Rent and money costs	$118,300
Money given to others	$46,243

Staff

People on the town's payroll at the end of each year, as reported to the Province.

Year	Full-time	Part-time	Seasonal
2019	8	5	2
2020	8	5	2
2021	8	7	2
2022	8	5	2
2023	8	4	4
2024	8	4	2
2025	8	4	2

How things have changed since 2019

Money in compared with day-to-day spending, each year. When the orange line is above the blue one, the town spent more than it took in and made up the difference from savings or loans. Grants for big projects arrive in some years and not others, which makes "money in" jump around.

$2.8M

Show as a table

Year	Money in	Day-to-day spending
2019	$3.1M	$1.6M
2020	$3.4M	$2.1M
2021	$2.2M	$2.4M
2022	$2.4M	$1.1M
2023	$2.2M	$413K
2024	$2.5M	$2.4M
2025	$2.8M	$2.6M

Town property tax

Up 30% since 2019. Prices rose 21%.

$1.6M

Show as a table

Year	Town property tax
2019	$1.3M
2020	$1.3M
2021	$1.4M
2022	$1.4M
2023	$1.5M
2024	$1.6M
2025	$1.6M

Savings (reserves)

Money set aside for repairs, equipment and emergencies.

$2.9M

Show as a table

Year	Savings
2019	$2.2M
2020	$2.3M
2021	$2.4M
2022	$2.6M
2023	$2.4M
2024	$2.6M
2025	$2.9M

What the town owes

Long-term loans plus short-term (temporary) loans at year end.

Show as a table

Year	Long-term loans	Temporary loans
2019	$0	$0
2020	$0	$0
2021	$0	$0
2022	$0	$0
2023	$0	$0
2024	$0	$0
2025	$0	$0

Building new things

Spending on new or rebuilt roads, pipes, buildings and equipment, compared with how fast existing ones wear out.

$125K

Show as a table

Year	Built or bought	Wore out (amortization)
2019	$118K	$275K
2020	$2.7M	$343K
2021	$416K	$401K
2022	$385K	$409K
2023	$408K	$561K
2024	$45,064	$561K
2025	$125K	$549K

Source: Ontario Financial Information Return (FIR), Schedules 10, 40, 51, 60, 70, 74 and 80 (archived copy). Ontario Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing. Retrieved 2026-10-01. Figures are what the municipality reported to the Province for each year, prepared on the same basis as its audited financial statements.