Council BooksLaurentian HillsOntarioSign inSubscribe
Not the full picture. Built from public records, which leave things out.Read by hand, Oct 2026DetailsThis is built from public records, which leave a lot out, and some of it may be wrong or out of date.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 Laurentian Hills'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.
Ontario / Laurentian HillsUpdated Oct 7, 2026

Your town, in plain words

How Laurentian Hills uses the money we share.

A clear, checkable guide to Laurentian Hills' budget, taxes and council decisions. A small town in Renfrew County, in the Ottawa Valley, with a mayor and four ward councillors. Every figure links back to the public record.

Property tax raised in 2025$6.4Mall property in Laurentian Hills53% Town30% County18% SchoolsSee where your tax bill goes →
Town spending, 2025$4.2MAbout $2,715 per household, up 1.5% from 2024.See the money →
Property tax change−3.5%Laurentian Hills' own property tax came to $3.7M in 2025, against $3.9M in 2024.What changed →

Where it goes

Most of every dollar supports the everyday town.

Explore every service →
Water, sewers and garbage$1.3M · 31%
Roads and snow$1.1M · 27%
Police, fire and safety$798K · 19%
Running the town office$742K · 18%
Show all 7 servicesShow fewer
Parks, arena and library$166K · 4%
Planning and business$50,857 · 1%
Social services$9,312 · 0%

Day-to-day spending in 2025, from Laurentian Hills' report to the Province.

A fair comparisonHow does Laurentian Hills compare?Among 29 similar Ontario towns, Laurentian Hills' day-to-day spending per household is near the middle.Laurentian Hills is here · 12 of 29, lowest to highestCompare Laurentian Hills →

Questions worth asking

A closer look at the numbers.

Each one is a question, not an accusation. Every one lists ordinary reasons it could be true, and the documents it comes from.

All 8 questions
Worth askingMoney health

Why does the 2026 budget count on $1,375,424.80 from reserves and last year's surplus?

$1,375,424.80from reserves and the 2025 surplus in the 2026 budget, out of $6,233,133.32

The Town's 2026 budget pays for about 22 cents of every dollar of its own spending from money saved in earlier years (reserves, which are savings set aside for later) and from the 2025 surplus. The same budget also puts $967,195.00 into reserves. Worked out by us: the difference ($1,375,424.80 minus $967,195.00) is $408,229.80 taken out, net.

Found by reading the town's own documents · 3 sources

Worth askingMoney health

The Town's own plan shows a $2.24 million yearly gap for its buildings, roads and water. How will it be covered?

$2.24 millionyearly capital funding gap, in the Town's 2025 Asset Management Plan

The Town's 2025 Asset Management Plan says the Town commits about $666,000 a year to capital projects or reserves and has a yearly funding gap of $2.24 million. It also says the Town already meets the level of service it picked, and recommends no funding increase.

Found by reading the town's own documents · 4 sources

Worth askingMoney health

How will the Town pay for the water treatment plant, which drives an $11.3 million water backlog?

$11.3 millionwater backlog, mostly the treatment plant, in the 2025 Asset Management Plan

The Asset Management Plan says the water network has a backlog of $11.3 million, mostly the water treatment plant, and needs $844 thousand a year to keep up. The 2026 water and sewer budget sets aside $5,000.00 for water reserves and $5,000.00 for sewer reserves. Water and sewer together are budgeted at $830,614.00.

Found by reading the town's own documents · 3 sources

Show 4 more questionsShow fewer
Worth askingMoney health

Why are so many property taxes unpaid?

$753Kowed in unpaid property tax, end of 2025

At the end of 2025, $753K of property tax had been billed but not paid. That is 12% of everything billed. Only 7 of 28 similar towns had a higher share. A year earlier it was $762K.

Found automatically from the town's financial reports · 2 sources

Good to knowOpenness

Can residents search the Town's council minutes?

Council minutes for 2023 to 2026 are posted as PDFs. The 2025 and 2026 council minutes we opened are pictures of pages, with no text a computer can read or search. That means a resident cannot search them for a name or a dollar amount.

Found by reading the town's own documents · 1 source

Good to knowOpenness

Where is the Town's yearly statement of council pay and expenses?

$101,871.00total 2026 budget for council

The 2026 budget gives council's cost as one total of $101,871.00. Ontario's Municipal Act requires each municipality to publish a yearly statement of what each member was paid. We did not find one on the pages we read, so we did not fill the pay table.

Found by reading the town's own documents · 1 source

Where your tax bill goes

A property tax bill in Laurentian Hills pays for three governments. Only part of it goes to the town, and that part is what Laurentian Hills council controls.

Tax bill split: Laurentian Hills 53%, County or region 30%, Schools 18%
$6.4Mraised in 2025
  • Laurentian Hills53%
  • County or region30%
  • Schools18%

  • Every fact, sourced

    Each number links to the public document it came from. Check it yourself.

  • No accusations

    We ask questions. Every one lists ordinary reasons a number could look odd.

  • Compared fairly

    Towns are only compared with places of a similar size and kind, from the same yearly reports.

Council meetings are open to the public, and councillors answer to you. How to reach Laurentian Hills' council · Council Books is free and paid for by readers: support this work.