Questions · 12 so far
We read Hornepayne's financial reports and meeting minutes, and compared its numbers with 47 similar Ontario towns. These are the things that stood out.
These are unusual enough that residents deserve a clear answer from council.
$1.3Min savings at the end of 2024
Towns keep savings (called reserves) to pay for new trucks, roof repairs and surprises. Hornepayne had $1.3M saved at the end of 2024, up from $1.1M in 2019. That is 23% of one year's spending. Only 4 of 47 similar towns had less, compared with what they spend.
Found automatically from the town's financial reports · 2 sources
$596Kowed in unpaid property tax, end of 2024
At the end of 2024, $596K of property tax had been billed but not paid. That is 27% of everything billed. Only 1 of 47 similar towns had a higher share. A year earlier it was $416K.
Found automatically from the town's financial reports · 2 sources
There may well be a good reason. It is still worth asking what it is.
$3,770,220of long-term loans planned for 2025 capital spending of $12,037,600
A capital budget is the plan for big, one-time purchases such as buildings, trucks and roads. The 2025 capital budget adds up to $12,037,600. It plans to pay for it with $6,959,080 of grants, $3,770,220 of long-term loans and the rest from savings and fees. The biggest item is $5,582,700 for arena repairs and expansion, to be paid with $3,433,980 of federal grants and a $2,148,720 loan. The Township's total debt was $1,426,324 at the end of 2023, the last year whose statements we could read. Taxes brought in $2,224,151 in 2023. The plan is not a sign that the money has been borrowed: we could not read the 2024 statements, so we do not know what has been borrowed so far.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 4 sources
$1,413,180deficit in 2023, against a plan of nil
A deficit is what is left when a year's spending is more than its income. The 2023 plan in the audited statements expected a result of nil. The actual result was a deficit of $1,413,180. Expenses were $6,695,955 against a plan of $4,917,120. The Township says its budget leaves out amortization (the yearly wearing-out cost of buildings and equipment), which was $1,033,796 in 2023. Taking amortization out of the actual expenses leaves $5,662,159, which is still $745,039 above the plan (both worked out by us). Revenue was also higher than planned, at $5,282,775 against $4,917,120. In the budget book, the line for repairs to the grader (a road machine) was budgeted at 15,000 and came in at 84,720, and net public works cost 903,573 against a budget of 751,925.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 4 sources
$79,924legal costs in 2023, against a budget of $30,000
The budget book lists a line called Legal inside the administration costs. For 2023 the budget was 30,000 and the actual cost was 79,924. The 2024 budget stayed at 30,000 and the 2025 budget is 50,000. The audit line was 40,000 in the 2023 budget and 45,376 in actual cost. We did not find an explanation in the budget book.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 1 source
$718,575owed for landfill closing and care at the end of 2023, against a landfill reserve of $109,386
A landfill is the town dump. When it is full it has to be capped and watched for years, and the Township has to set the cost aside in its books. The 2023 statements say the landfill was expected to reach capacity in 2 years, with 4,000 cubic metres, or 5%, of space left. The Township's estimated liability (what it owes for closing and watching the site) was $718,575. The total estimated cost, not discounted for the passage of time, was $1,098,385. The landfill reserve (money set aside for it) was $109,386. The 2025 capital summary shows $6,000 for the landfill.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 3 sources
Qualifiedaudit opinion on the 2023 statements, dated September 18, 2024
A qualified opinion means the auditor says the statements are fair except for one named problem. For 2023 the auditor, BDO Canada LLP, said the statements present the Township's position fairly "except for the possible effects of the matter" it describes. The matter is that the Township had not finished checking its buildings and equipment for legal obligations to clean up or take them apart (an asset retirement obligation). The auditor says it is not possible to work out what that would change. The report is dated September 18, 2024. We found no Township explanation.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 2 sources
($21,255)net financial assets (debt) at the end of 2023, from $797,939 a year earlier
Net financial assets are what a town has in cash and money owed to it, less what it owes. At the end of 2022 that was $797,939. At the end of 2023 it was a net debt of $21,255. The general surplus (the part of savings not set aside for anything) went from $841,610 to a deficit of $113,942. The Township's cash rose to $1,903,685, mainly because it collected money owed to it (accounts receivable fell from $4,528,466 to $1,278,046) and used it to close a $2,629,606 bank loan taken for the airport. It also has an operating credit line of $1,000,000 that was unused at the end of 2023.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 3 sources
+61%running the town office, 2019 to 2024
Hornepayne spent $822K on running the town office in 2019 and $1.3M in 2024. Prices only went up about 18% in that time. Only 8 of 47 similar towns had faster growth here.
Found automatically from the town's financial reports · 3 sources
Background that helps make sense of the rest.
On October 7, 2026 the Township's budget page listed the 2025 budget as the newest, and its council pay page listed 2024 as the newest year. We did not find a 2026 budget or a 2025 pay statement on those pages. The 2024 pay statement and the 2024 audited statements that are posted are scanned pages with no readable text, which makes them hard to search or copy.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 2 sources
−$892Knet financial position, 2024
In 2019, Hornepayne had $355K more in cash and money owed to it than it owed to others. By 2024 it was −$892K. About 68% of that change ($846K) is a new accounting rule from 2023: towns must now record the future cost of closing things like a landfill. That is not new spending or borrowing. Even leaving that out, only 8 of 47 similar towns are in a weaker position.
Found automatically from the town's financial reports · 2 sources
$539per home on garbage, dump and recycling, 2024
Hornepayne spent about $539 per home on garbage, dump and recycling in 2024. The typical similar town spent $260. Only 2 of 47 similar towns spent more.
Found automatically from the town's financial reports · 1 source
$1.3Min savings at the end of 2024
Towns keep savings (called reserves) to pay for new trucks, roof repairs and surprises. Hornepayne had $1.3M saved at the end of 2024, up from $1.1M in 2019. That is 23% of one year's spending. Only 4 of 47 similar towns had less, compared with what they spend.
| Year | Savings (reserves) |
|---|---|
| 2019 | $1.1M |
| 2020 | $1.9M |
| 2021 | $1.8M |
| 2022 | $1.8M |
| 2023 | $1.5M |
| 2024 | $1.3M |
With little saved, a broken bridge or a storm has to be paid for with a sudden tax increase or a loan. Low savings can also mean past budgets were balanced by spending savings instead of facing the real cost.
You can ask during the public part of a council meeting, by writing to the clerk, or by contacting your councillors. How to reach council.
Speak for Hornepayne? Send us your answer and we will publish it with this question.
Savings (reserves and reserve funds): 2019 $1.1M, 2020 $1.9M, 2021 $1.8M, 2022 $1.8M, 2023 $1.5M, 2024 $1.3M.
Ontario Financial Information Return (FIR), 2019 to 2024 · Schedule 70, line 6420 · archived copy
Typical among similar towns: savings equal to 65% of a year's spending. Hornepayne: 23%.
Ontario Financial Information Return (FIR), 2024, 47 similar municipalities · Schedules 40 and 70 · archived copy
$596Kowed in unpaid property tax, end of 2024
At the end of 2024, $596K of property tax had been billed but not paid. That is 27% of everything billed. Only 1 of 47 similar towns had a higher share. A year earlier it was $416K.
| Year | Unpaid property tax at year end |
|---|---|
| 2019 | $370K |
| 2020 | $548K |
| 2021 | $490K |
| 2022 | $509K |
| 2023 | $416K |
| 2024 | $596K |
When taxes go unpaid, everyone else carries the cost, and the town may borrow to cover the gap. The Province's financial indicators treat 10% to 15% as a moderate risk and more than 15% as a high risk. Collection is the town's job, so a rising number is worth asking about.
You can ask during the public part of a council meeting, by writing to the clerk, or by contacting your councillors. How to reach council.
Speak for Hornepayne? Send us your answer and we will publish it with this question.
Taxes receivable: 2019 $370K, 2020 $548K, 2021 $490K, 2022 $509K, 2023 $416K, 2024 $596K. Of the 2024 total, $357K was from earlier years.
Ontario Financial Information Return (FIR), 2019 to 2024 · Schedule 70, lines 0610 to 0699 · archived copy
Typical among similar towns: 10.4% of taxes billed.
Ontario Financial Information Return (FIR), 2024, 47 similar municipalities · Schedules 26 and 70 · archived copy
$3,770,220of long-term loans planned for 2025 capital spending of $12,037,600
A capital budget is the plan for big, one-time purchases such as buildings, trucks and roads. The 2025 capital budget adds up to $12,037,600. It plans to pay for it with $6,959,080 of grants, $3,770,220 of long-term loans and the rest from savings and fees. The biggest item is $5,582,700 for arena repairs and expansion, to be paid with $3,433,980 of federal grants and a $2,148,720 loan. The Township's total debt was $1,426,324 at the end of 2023, the last year whose statements we could read. Taxes brought in $2,224,151 in 2023. The plan is not a sign that the money has been borrowed: we could not read the 2024 statements, so we do not know what has been borrowed so far.
A loan has to be paid back, with interest, from taxes or fees, long after the project is built. If the grants do not arrive, or arrive late, the loan can grow. Residents should be able to see how much of each year's tax will go to loan payments once the projects are done.
You can ask during the public part of a council meeting, by writing to the clerk, or by contacting your councillors. How to reach council.
Speak for Hornepayne? Send us your answer and we will publish it with this question.
The records that would answer this can be requested: Arena project funding and borrowing records, with wording you can copy.
Capital budget summary: capital spending total 12,037,600. Funding: "Grants 6,959,080", "Long Term Loan 3,770,220", "Transfer from Reserves 210,200", "Transfer from Deferred Revenue 1,036,500". Arena capital spending 5,592,700. The by-law adopting the budget was passed on the 12th day of February 2025.
Township of Hornepayne, 2025 Municipal Budget, By-Law No. 2109 · Capital Budget summary, PDF page 25 (by-law date on PDF page 1)
Arena capital budget, 2025: revenues Federal Grants 3,433,980, Long Term Loan 2,148,720, Transfer from Arena Reserves 10,000, Total Revenues 5,592,700. Expenses "Construction - Repairs & Expansion" 5,582,700.
Township of Hornepayne, 2025 Municipal Budget, By-Law No. 2109 · Capital budget, Arena, PDF page 28
Note 8: "Net long term debt" at December 31, 2023 was $1,426,324 (2022: $1,544,376). Principal due in 2024 was $120,637. "The interest paid relating to the above long term debt was $35,020".
Corporation of the Township of Hornepayne, Consolidated Financial Statements, December 31, 2023 · Note 8, Net long term debt, PDF page 16
Statement of Operations, 2023 actual: Taxation (Note 3) $ 2,224,151.
Corporation of the Township of Hornepayne, Consolidated Financial Statements, December 31, 2023 · Consolidated Statement of Operations, PDF page 8
$1,413,180deficit in 2023, against a plan of nil
A deficit is what is left when a year's spending is more than its income. The 2023 plan in the audited statements expected a result of nil. The actual result was a deficit of $1,413,180. Expenses were $6,695,955 against a plan of $4,917,120. The Township says its budget leaves out amortization (the yearly wearing-out cost of buildings and equipment), which was $1,033,796 in 2023. Taking amortization out of the actual expenses leaves $5,662,159, which is still $745,039 above the plan (both worked out by us). Revenue was also higher than planned, at $5,282,775 against $4,917,120. In the budget book, the line for repairs to the grader (a road machine) was budgeted at 15,000 and came in at 84,720, and net public works cost 903,573 against a budget of 751,925.
Residents are told the budget is what the year will cost. When a year costs well over that even after the accounting difference, the budget may be too tight, or costs may be growing faster than the tax levy. The deficit came out of savings, which are then not there for the next surprise.
You can ask during the public part of a council meeting, by writing to the clerk, or by contacting your councillors. How to reach council.
Speak for Hornepayne? Send us your answer and we will publish it with this question.
Statement of Operations: 2023 budget column and 2023 actual column. Expenses total 4,917,120 (budget) and 6,695,955 (actual). Revenue total 4,917,120 (budget) and 5,282,775 (actual). Environmental services 1,234,325 (budget), 2,133,481 (actual). "Annual surplus (deficit)" nil (budget), (1,413,180) (actual), against 3,369,589 for 2022.
Corporation of the Township of Hornepayne, Consolidated Financial Statements, December 31, 2023 · Consolidated Statement of Operations, PDF page 8
Note 14, Budget: "the budget expensed all tangible capital expenditures rather than including amortization expense." The budget "anticipated use of surpluses accumulated in previous years to reduce current year expenditures in excess of current year revenues to $nil."
Corporation of the Township of Hornepayne, Consolidated Financial Statements, December 31, 2023 · Note 14, Budget, PDF page 21
Statement of Cash Flows: "Amortization" 1,033,796 for 2023 (905,167 for 2022).
Corporation of the Township of Hornepayne, Consolidated Financial Statements, December 31, 2023 · Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows, PDF page 9
Budget book, columns headed 2023 Budget and Actual: "Repairs & Maintenance 15,000 84,720" under Total - GRADER 16,500 85,513; Total - SANDER 19,500 35,627; NET PUBLIC WORKS 751,925 903,573; Garbage/landfill "Closing Cost Adjustment 111,529" in the actual column only.
Township of Hornepayne, 2025 Municipal Budget, By-Law No. 2109 · Public Works Department, PDF pages 11 and 12; Garbage/Landfill, PDF page 14
$79,924legal costs in 2023, against a budget of $30,000
The budget book lists a line called Legal inside the administration costs. For 2023 the budget was 30,000 and the actual cost was 79,924. The 2024 budget stayed at 30,000 and the 2025 budget is 50,000. The audit line was 40,000 in the 2023 budget and 45,376 in actual cost. We did not find an explanation in the budget book.
Legal bills can be a sign of a dispute, a big contract or a land deal. They can also be ordinary advice that was hard to predict. Residents can only judge it if the Township says what the money was for.
You can ask during the public part of a council meeting, by writing to the clerk, or by contacting your councillors. How to reach council.
Speak for Hornepayne? Send us your answer and we will publish it with this question.
The records that would answer this can be requested: Legal costs by year, 2023 to 2025, with wording you can copy.
Administration expenses, columns headed 2023 Budget, 2023 Actual, 2024 Budget, 2025 Budget: "Legal 30,000 79,924 30,000 50,000". "Audit 40,000 45,376 40,000 30,000". "Total ADMINISTRATION EXPENSE 1,010,915 1,196,452 961,200 1,052,500".
Township of Hornepayne, 2025 Municipal Budget, By-Law No. 2109 · Operating budget, Administration expenses, PDF page 7
$718,575owed for landfill closing and care at the end of 2023, against a landfill reserve of $109,386
A landfill is the town dump. When it is full it has to be capped and watched for years, and the Township has to set the cost aside in its books. The 2023 statements say the landfill was expected to reach capacity in 2 years, with 4,000 cubic metres, or 5%, of space left. The Township's estimated liability (what it owes for closing and watching the site) was $718,575. The total estimated cost, not discounted for the passage of time, was $1,098,385. The landfill reserve (money set aside for it) was $109,386. The 2025 capital summary shows $6,000 for the landfill.
Closing a dump is a large bill that arrives at a set time. If it has not been saved for, it falls on taxes or on new loans, and a new site or an expansion costs more again. Residents can only plan for it if the Township says when and how.
You can ask during the public part of a council meeting, by writing to the clerk, or by contacting your councillors. How to reach council.
Speak for Hornepayne? Send us your answer and we will publish it with this question.
Note 9: "The reported liability as at year end was $718,575 (2022 - $602,353)". "The landfill is expected to reach its capacity in 2 years and the estimated remaining capacity is 4,000 cubic metres which is 5% (2022 - 10%) of the site's total capacity." "The total undiscounted estimated future expenses for closure and post-closure care are $1,098,385".
Corporation of the Township of Hornepayne, Consolidated Financial Statements, December 31, 2023 · Note 9, Solid waste closure and post-closure liabilities, PDF page 17
Note 13, reserves set aside for specific purposes by Council: "Landfill reserve 109,386" (2022: 104,693).
Corporation of the Township of Hornepayne, Consolidated Financial Statements, December 31, 2023 · Note 13, Accumulated surplus, PDF page 20
Capital spending summary, 2025: "Landfill 6,000".
Township of Hornepayne, 2025 Municipal Budget, By-Law No. 2109 · Capital Budget summary, PDF page 25
Qualifiedaudit opinion on the 2023 statements, dated September 18, 2024
A qualified opinion means the auditor says the statements are fair except for one named problem. For 2023 the auditor, BDO Canada LLP, said the statements present the Township's position fairly "except for the possible effects of the matter" it describes. The matter is that the Township had not finished checking its buildings and equipment for legal obligations to clean up or take them apart (an asset retirement obligation). The auditor says it is not possible to work out what that would change. The report is dated September 18, 2024. We found no Township explanation.
A qualified opinion does not mean money is missing. It does mean one set of numbers is incomplete and the auditor could not say how large the gap is. Lenders and grant programs can ask about it.
You can ask during the public part of a council meeting, by writing to the clerk, or by contacting your councillors. How to reach council.
Speak for Hornepayne? Send us your answer and we will publish it with this question.
Qualified Opinion: "except for the possible effects of the matter described in the Basis for Qualified Opinion section of our report the accompanying consolidated financial statements present fairly, in all material respects". Basis: "Management has not completed its assessment of the tangible capital assets for potential asset retirement obligations."
Corporation of the Township of Hornepayne, Consolidated Financial Statements, December 31, 2023 · Independent Auditor's Report, PDF pages 4 to 5
Auditor's report signed at Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, September 18, 2024.
Corporation of the Township of Hornepayne, Consolidated Financial Statements, December 31, 2023 · Independent Auditor's Report, PDF page 6
($21,255)net financial assets (debt) at the end of 2023, from $797,939 a year earlier
Net financial assets are what a town has in cash and money owed to it, less what it owes. At the end of 2022 that was $797,939. At the end of 2023 it was a net debt of $21,255. The general surplus (the part of savings not set aside for anything) went from $841,610 to a deficit of $113,942. The Township's cash rose to $1,903,685, mainly because it collected money owed to it (accounts receivable fell from $4,528,466 to $1,278,046) and used it to close a $2,629,606 bank loan taken for the airport. It also has an operating credit line of $1,000,000 that was unused at the end of 2023.
The general surplus is the cushion for surprises. With it negative and net financial assets below zero, a small town has less room for a bad year or a late grant.
You can ask during the public part of a council meeting, by writing to the clerk, or by contacting your councillors. How to reach council.
Speak for Hornepayne? Send us your answer and we will publish it with this question.
Statement of Financial Position, December 31, 2023 and 2022: Cash and cash equivalents $ 1,903,685 and $ 1,389,064. Accounts receivable 1,278,046 and 4,528,466. Bank indebtedness - and 2,629,606. Net financial assets (debt) (21,255) and 797,939. Tangible capital assets (Note 12) 17,718,386.
Corporation of the Township of Hornepayne, Consolidated Financial Statements, December 31, 2023 · Consolidated Statement of Financial Position, PDF page 7
Note 13: "General surplus (113,942) 841,610" for 2023 and 2022.
Corporation of the Township of Hornepayne, Consolidated Financial Statements, December 31, 2023 · Note 13, Accumulated surplus, PDF page 20
Note 5: "The Municipality has an operating line facility with a credit limit of $1,000,000 (entire balance available at December 31, 2023)." The airport line of credit "was paid in full and closed in 2023."
Corporation of the Township of Hornepayne, Consolidated Financial Statements, December 31, 2023 · Note 5, Bank Indebtedness, PDF page 14
+61%running the town office, 2019 to 2024
Hornepayne spent $822K on running the town office in 2019 and $1.3M in 2024. Prices only went up about 18% in that time. Only 8 of 47 similar towns had faster growth here.
| Year | Running the town office | Prices (inflation) |
|---|---|---|
| 2019 | +0% | +0% |
| 2020 | +15% | +1% |
| 2021 | +12% | +4% |
| 2022 | +26% | +11% |
| 2023 | +69% | +16% |
| 2024 | +61% | +18% |
Change since the first year shown. The grey line is how much prices rose overall, for comparison.
Money spent running the office is money not spent on roads, water or safety. When office costs grow much faster than the services people see, it is fair to ask what the extra money is buying.
You can ask during the public part of a council meeting, by writing to the clerk, or by contacting your councillors. How to reach council.
Speak for Hornepayne? Send us your answer and we will publish it with this question.
Running the town office: 2019 $822K, 2020 $946K, 2021 $921K, 2022 $1.0M, 2023 $1.4M, 2024 $1.3M.
Ontario Financial Information Return (FIR), 2019 to 2024 · Schedule 40 · archived copy
Biggest driver: Office and administration, from $734K to $1.2M.
Ontario Financial Information Return (FIR), 2019 to 2024 · Schedule 40 · archived copy
Typical growth among similar towns: 39%. Hornepayne ranks 9th of 48.
Ontario Financial Information Return (FIR), 2024, 47 similar municipalities · Schedule 40 · archived copy
On October 7, 2026 the Township's budget page listed the 2025 budget as the newest, and its council pay page listed 2024 as the newest year. We did not find a 2026 budget or a 2025 pay statement on those pages. The 2024 pay statement and the 2024 audited statements that are posted are scanned pages with no readable text, which makes them hard to search or copy.
Residents can only check what the Township has done with documents they can find and read. A scan cannot be searched, copied into a screen reader or checked by a program.
You can ask during the public part of a council meeting, by writing to the clerk, or by contacting your councillors. How to reach council.
Speak for Hornepayne? Send us your answer and we will publish it with this question.
Budget page: "2025 Annual budget" is the newest listed, then "Past Budgets" from 2024 back to 2018.
Township of Hornepayne, Budget page · Budget page, listing of budgets
Council remuneration and expenses page: statements listed for 2024, 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020 and 2019.
Township of Hornepayne, Council Remuneration and Expenses page · Council remuneration and expenses page, listing of statements
−$892Knet financial position, 2024
In 2019, Hornepayne had $355K more in cash and money owed to it than it owed to others. By 2024 it was −$892K. About 68% of that change ($846K) is a new accounting rule from 2023: towns must now record the future cost of closing things like a landfill. That is not new spending or borrowing. Even leaving that out, only 8 of 47 similar towns are in a weaker position.
| Year | Net financial position |
|---|---|
| 2019 | $355K |
| 2020 | $1.0M |
| 2021 | $856K |
| 2022 | $798K |
| 2023 | −$21,255 |
| 2024 | −$892K |
This number is one of the clearest signs of whether a town is living within its means. The accounting-rule part is a bill that will come due when the landfill closes, not money already spent. The rest is real borrowing and spending of savings.
You can ask during the public part of a council meeting, by writing to the clerk, or by contacting your councillors. How to reach council.
Speak for Hornepayne? Send us your answer and we will publish it with this question.
Net financial assets: 2019 $355K, 2020 $1.0M, 2021 $856K, 2022 $798K, 2023 −$21,255, 2024 −$892K.
Ontario Financial Information Return (FIR), 2019 to 2024 · Schedule 70, line 9945 · archived copy
Future landfill and similar closing costs recorded: $846K. Long-term debt: $1.4M. Temporary loans: $0.
Ontario Financial Information Return (FIR), 2019 to 2024 · Schedule 70, lines 2920, 2699, 2099 · archived copy
$539per home on garbage, dump and recycling, 2024
Hornepayne spent about $539 per home on garbage, dump and recycling in 2024. The typical similar town spent $260. Only 2 of 47 similar towns spent more.
Spending more than neighbours is not wrong by itself. It might buy better service. But it is the first place to look for costs that could be lower, such as contracts that were not competitively bid.
You can ask during the public part of a council meeting, by writing to the clerk, or by contacting your councillors. How to reach council.
Speak for Hornepayne? Send us your answer and we will publish it with this question.
Garbage, dump and recycling per home: Hornepayne $539; typical similar town $260; ranked 3rd highest of 48.
Ontario Financial Information Return (FIR), 2024, 47 similar municipalities · Schedule 40 and Schedule 2 · archived copy