Questions · 10 so far
We read North Middlesex's financial reports and meeting minutes, and compared its numbers with 82 similar Ontario towns. These are the things that stood out.
These are unusual enough that residents deserve a clear answer from council.
$648per home on council, 2023
North Middlesex spent about $648 per home on council in 2023. The typical similar town spent $54. None of the 82 similar towns spent more.
Found automatically from the town's financial reports · 1 source
There may well be a good reason. It is still worth asking what it is.
2022the newest audited year we found, with an auditor's report dated December 6, 2023
Audited statements are the town's yearly accounts, checked by an outside accountant. The newest ones posted on the Municipality's Budget & Finance page are for 2022, and that auditor's report is dated December 6, 2023. The 2026 budget, written in February 2026, still labels its 2023 and 2024 numbers "Unaudited". We did not find audited statements for 2023, 2024 or 2025.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 3 sources
$1,826,832net cash requirement for municipal drains in the 2026 budget, against $302,773 in the 2025 budget
Municipal drains are ditches and tile systems built or repaired by the town, which normally bills the landowners who benefit. In the 2025 budget, the drains department had revenue of $3,504,327, of which $3,100,000 was "Ratepayers Debenture Payments" (landowners repaying a loan). For 2026 the revenue line is $1,068,000, of which ratepayer debenture payments are $716,000, while spending is $2,894,832. The department's net cash requirement goes from $302,773 in the 2025 budget to $1,826,832, which the budget prints as an increase of 503.37%. The budget does not explain the change.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 3 sources
$7,000planned transfer into reserves in 2026, against $4,392,220 in the 2025 budget
Reserves are savings set aside for future repairs and projects. The 2026 budget shows money coming out of reserves and reserve funds of $3,949,996, against $3,869,220 in the 2025 budget. Money going into reserves is $7,000 in 2026. In 2024 it was $2,286,953 (unaudited) and in the 2025 budget $4,392,220. The budget does not say why contributions fall away.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 2 sources
$681,796transfer from reserves shown as Council revenue in the 2026 budget
In earlier years the Council department cost the town between $184,196 and $233,300 a year and had no revenue. In the 2026 budget it has a revenue line, "Tfer from Res and Res Funds", of $681,796. That turns the department's requirement from $227,885 in the 2025 budget into a contribution of $457,712. Council's own spending lines (pay, conferences, donations) are $224,084 and change little.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 2 sources
$3,664,166salaries and wages in the 2026 budget, against $3,135,695 in the 2025 budget
Across the tax-supported departments (everything except water and wastewater), the budget shows salaries and wages of $2,314,890 in 2023, $2,797,121 in 2024 (both unaudited), $3,343,815 forecast for 2025 and $3,664,166 for 2026. That is 16.85% above the 2025 budget of $3,135,695. In general government (the administration office), salaries and wages go from $546,000 in the 2025 budget to $794,566, up 45.52%. The budget does not list new positions or explain the increase.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 2 sources
$870,000gravel grading materials in the 2026 budget, against $15,000 in the 2025 budget
The "GM Grading - Materials Purchased" line (gravel for grading rural roads) was $9,344 in 2023 (unaudited), nothing in 2024, $15,000 in both the 2024 and 2025 budgets, and is $870,000 in the 2026 request. The dust layer line (calcium to control road dust) was $308,167 in 2023, $224,794 in 2024 and nothing in the 2025 budget, and is $375,000 in 2026. The 2026 capital list shows a "Gravel Program" of $870,000 and a "Calcium Program" of $375,000. The department totals rise from $246,250 to $967,512 for gravel grading (292.90%) and from $17,750 to $377,652 for the dust layer.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 3 sources
+69%water, sewers and garbage, 2019 to 2023
North Middlesex spent $2.9M on water, sewers and garbage in 2019 and $4.9M in 2023. Prices only went up about 16% in that time.
Found automatically from the town's financial reports · 2 sources
$6.5Min temporary loans, end of 2023
At the end of 2023, North Middlesex owed $6.5M on temporary loans. That is like putting 26% of a year's income on a line of credit. This is short-term borrowing for building projects, which is normal while waiting for a grant or a long-term loan. But it was already $4.4M a year earlier, so it has lasted more than a year. Only 6 of 82 similar towns had any temporary loans at the end of 2023.
Found automatically from the town's financial reports · 1 source
Background that helps make sense of the rest.
The 2026 budget was adopted by a written decision of the Mayor, Brian Ropp, dated February 18, 2026. It says the Mayor prepared and presented the proposed budget, waived the seven-day response period, and noted that council waived its remaining review period. The decision is issued under section 284.3 of the Municipal Act, 2001 and Ontario Regulation 530/22. We did not read council minutes, so we do not know what council discussed.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 3 sources
$648per home on council, 2023
North Middlesex spent about $648 per home on council in 2023. The typical similar town spent $54. None of the 82 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 North Middlesex? Send us your answer and we will publish it with this question.
Council per home: North Middlesex $648; typical similar town $54; ranked 1st highest of 83.
Ontario Financial Information Return (FIR), 2023, 82 similar municipalities · Schedule 40 and Schedule 2 · archived copy
2022the newest audited year we found, with an auditor's report dated December 6, 2023
Audited statements are the town's yearly accounts, checked by an outside accountant. The newest ones posted on the Municipality's Budget & Finance page are for 2022, and that auditor's report is dated December 6, 2023. The 2026 budget, written in February 2026, still labels its 2023 and 2024 numbers "Unaudited". We did not find audited statements for 2023, 2024 or 2025.
Audited statements are the only yearly picture of the town's savings, debt and surplus that an independent accountant has signed. Without them, residents are working from budget forecasts. The 2022 statements show how much can change: the town's net financial assets (what it holds minus what it owes in money terms) fell from $10,281,570 to $1,530,745 in that one year.
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 North Middlesex? Send us your answer and we will publish it with this question.
The records that would answer this can be requested: Audited financial statements for 2023, 2024 and 2025, with wording you can copy.
The 2026 budget's column headings read "2023 Unaudited 2024 Unaudited 2025 Q3 Forecast".
2026 Approved Budget · PDF page 37, column headings
The auditor's report on the 2022 statements is signed Graham Scott Enns LLP, St. Thomas, Ontario, "December 6, 2023", with an opinion that the statements "present fairly, in all material respects" the financial position.
Consolidated Financial Statements, December 31, 2022 · PDF pages 4 and 5, Independent Auditors' Report
Net financial assets were $1,530,745 at the end of 2022 and $10,281,570 at the end of 2021. Temporary advances (short-term borrowing) were $4,400,000 against $1,000,000 the year before.
Consolidated Financial Statements, December 31, 2022 · PDF page 6, Consolidated Statement of Financial Position
$1,826,832net cash requirement for municipal drains in the 2026 budget, against $302,773 in the 2025 budget
Municipal drains are ditches and tile systems built or repaired by the town, which normally bills the landowners who benefit. In the 2025 budget, the drains department had revenue of $3,504,327, of which $3,100,000 was "Ratepayers Debenture Payments" (landowners repaying a loan). For 2026 the revenue line is $1,068,000, of which ratepayer debenture payments are $716,000, while spending is $2,894,832. The department's net cash requirement goes from $302,773 in the 2025 budget to $1,826,832, which the budget prints as an increase of 503.37%. The budget does not explain the change.
If the cost of drain work is not billed back to the landowners who benefit, the rest of the town's taxpayers cover it. A swing this large in one department is worth understanding before the new council votes on the next budget.
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 North Middlesex? Send us your answer and we will publish it with this question.
The records that would answer this can be requested: Municipal drain projects and billing for 2026, with wording you can copy.
Municipal Drains Revenue Subtotal: (2,258,093) in 2023 unaudited, (930,499) in 2024 unaudited, (3,504,327) in the 2025 budget and (1,068,000) in the 2026 request. Ratepayers Debenture Payments: (3,100,000) in the 2025 budget and (716,000) in 2026.
2026 Approved Budget · PDF page 32, Municipal Drains revenue lines
Municipal Drains Expenditure Subtotal: 3,807,100 in the 2025 budget and 2,894,832 in 2026. "Rd Maintenance - Municipal Drain" is 50,000 in the 2025 budget and 800,000 in 2026 (printed change 1500.00%). "Municipal Drains Requirement from / (Contribution to) Cash" is 302,773 in the 2025 budget and 1,826,832 in 2026 (printed change 503.37%).
2026 Approved Budget · PDF page 32, Municipal Drains expenditure lines and requirement line
For context, the 2022 audited statements print "Recoveries from benefiting landowners" of 864,428 for 2022 and 1,821,743 for 2021.
Consolidated Financial Statements, December 31, 2022 · PDF page 7, Consolidated Statement of Operations, Revenues
$7,000planned transfer into reserves in 2026, against $4,392,220 in the 2025 budget
Reserves are savings set aside for future repairs and projects. The 2026 budget shows money coming out of reserves and reserve funds of $3,949,996, against $3,869,220 in the 2025 budget. Money going into reserves is $7,000 in 2026. In 2024 it was $2,286,953 (unaudited) and in the 2025 budget $4,392,220. The budget does not say why contributions fall away.
If a town spends from savings every year and stops refilling them, the same roads, buildings and trucks still wear out. Residents may face larger tax or debt decisions later.
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 North Middlesex? Send us your answer and we will publish it with this question.
Transfer to (from) Reserves and Reserve Funds, revenue side: (2,461) in 2023 unaudited, (171,488) in 2024 unaudited, (3,675,594) in the 2025 Q3 forecast, (3,869,220) in the 2025 budget and (3,949,996) in the 2026 request.
2026 Approved Budget · PDF page 38, last lines of the revenue table (Analysis by Object)
Transfer to (from) Reserves and Reserve Funds, expense side: 2,153,598 in 2023 unaudited, 2,286,953 in 2024 unaudited, 4,406,275 in the 2025 Q3 forecast, 4,392,220 in the 2025 budget and 7,000 in the 2026 request (printed change -99.84%).
2026 Approved Budget · PDF page 41, expenditure table (Analysis by Object)
$681,796transfer from reserves shown as Council revenue in the 2026 budget
In earlier years the Council department cost the town between $184,196 and $233,300 a year and had no revenue. In the 2026 budget it has a revenue line, "Tfer from Res and Res Funds", of $681,796. That turns the department's requirement from $227,885 in the 2025 budget into a contribution of $457,712. Council's own spending lines (pay, conferences, donations) are $224,084 and change little.
A reserve transfer under the Council heading makes Council look like it brings in money. It may instead be a place where the budget balances itself, which would hide what the money is for. Residents should be able to tell what the $681,796 pays 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 North Middlesex? Send us your answer and we will publish it with this question.
Council Revenue Subtotal for the 2026 request is (681,796), from the line "Tfer from Res and Res Funds". Council Expenditure Subtotal is 224,084 in 2026 and 227,885 in the 2025 budget. "Council Requirement from / (Contribution to) Cash" is 227,885 in the 2025 budget and (457,712) in 2026 (printed change -300.85%).
2026 Approved Budget · PDF page 7, Council department
Council department, 3 Year Actuals Comparison: "Council Requirement from / (Contribution to) Cash" 184,196 (2023 Unaudited), 200,179 (2024 Unaudited), 233,300 (2025 Q3 Forecast); "Council Revenue Subtotal" - in each of those columns.
Municipality of North Middlesex 2026 Approved Budget · PDF page 7, Council department
$3,664,166salaries and wages in the 2026 budget, against $3,135,695 in the 2025 budget
Across the tax-supported departments (everything except water and wastewater), the budget shows salaries and wages of $2,314,890 in 2023, $2,797,121 in 2024 (both unaudited), $3,343,815 forecast for 2025 and $3,664,166 for 2026. That is 16.85% above the 2025 budget of $3,135,695. In general government (the administration office), salaries and wages go from $546,000 in the 2025 budget to $794,566, up 45.52%. The budget does not list new positions or explain the increase.
Pay is usually the largest cost that carries forward every year. A rise this size in two budgets in a row sets the base for the next council's tax decisions.
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 North Middlesex? Send us your answer and we will publish it with this question.
Salaries and Wages Subtotal (all tax-supported departments): 2,314,890 in 2023 unaudited, 2,797,121 in 2024 unaudited, 3,343,815 in the 2025 Q3 forecast, 3,135,695 in the 2025 budget and 3,664,166 in the 2026 request (printed change 16.85%).
2026 Approved Budget · PDF page 39, Analysis by Object, Salaries and Wages Subtotal
"GG - Salaries and Wages": 384,069 in 2023 unaudited, 517,961 in 2024 unaudited, 688,300 in the 2025 Q3 forecast, 546,000 in the 2025 budget and 794,566 in the 2026 request (printed change 45.52%).
2026 Approved Budget · PDF page 8, General Government - Administration
$870,000gravel grading materials in the 2026 budget, against $15,000 in the 2025 budget
The "GM Grading - Materials Purchased" line (gravel for grading rural roads) was $9,344 in 2023 (unaudited), nothing in 2024, $15,000 in both the 2024 and 2025 budgets, and is $870,000 in the 2026 request. The dust layer line (calcium to control road dust) was $308,167 in 2023, $224,794 in 2024 and nothing in the 2025 budget, and is $375,000 in 2026. The 2026 capital list shows a "Gravel Program" of $870,000 and a "Calcium Program" of $375,000. The department totals rise from $246,250 to $967,512 for gravel grading (292.90%) and from $17,750 to $377,652 for the dust layer.
Gravel roads are a large part of what a rural township pays for, so how the cost is shown matters. The same dollars appear in two lists (operating and capital), and the budget does not say whether they are counted once or twice, or how they are paid 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 North Middlesex? Send us your answer and we will publish it with this question.
"GM Grading - Materials Purchased": 9,344 in 2023 unaudited, nothing in 2024 unaudited, 15,000 in the 2025 Q3 forecast, 15,000 in the 2024 and 2025 budgets and 870,000 in the 2026 request (printed change 5700.00%). "GM Dust Layer - Materials Purchased": 308,167, 224,794, nothing in the 2025 forecast, 320,000 in the 2024 budget, nothing in the 2025 budget and 375,000 in 2026.
2026 Approved Budget · PDF pages 15 and 16, Public Works detail
"Gravel Maintenance - Grading/Gravelling Requirement from / (Contribution to) Cash": 246,250 in the 2025 budget and 967,512 in 2026 (printed change 292.90%). "Gravel Maintenance - Dust Layer": 17,750 in the 2025 budget and 377,652 in 2026 (printed change 2027.62%).
2026 Approved Budget · PDF page 3, department summary (requirement lines)
The capital project list for 2026 shows "Gravel Program" 870,000 and "Calcium Program" 375,000, each marked NON-TCA (not a tangible capital asset).
2026 Approved Budget · PDF page 51, Capital Projects for 2026
+69%water, sewers and garbage, 2019 to 2023
North Middlesex spent $2.9M on water, sewers and garbage in 2019 and $4.9M in 2023. Prices only went up about 16% in that time.
| Year | Water, sewers and garbage | Prices (inflation) |
|---|---|---|
| 2019 | +0% | +0% |
| 2020 | +17% | +1% |
| 2021 | +27% | +4% |
| 2022 | +34% | +11% |
| 2023 | +69% | +16% |
Change since the first year shown. The grey line is how much prices rose overall, for comparison.
When one area grows much faster than prices, it is either doing more (which may be great) or paying more for the same thing. Residents deserve to know which.
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 North Middlesex? Send us your answer and we will publish it with this question.
Water, sewers and garbage: 2019 $2.9M, 2020 $3.4M, 2021 $3.7M, 2022 $3.9M, 2023 $4.9M.
Ontario Financial Information Return (FIR), 2019 to 2023 · Schedule 40 · archived copy
Biggest driver: Water pipes, from $1.6M to $3.3M.
Ontario Financial Information Return (FIR), 2019 to 2023 · Schedule 40 · archived copy
$6.5Min temporary loans, end of 2023
At the end of 2023, North Middlesex owed $6.5M on temporary loans. That is like putting 26% of a year's income on a line of credit. This is short-term borrowing for building projects, which is normal while waiting for a grant or a long-term loan. But it was already $4.4M a year earlier, so it has lasted more than a year. Only 6 of 82 similar towns had any temporary loans at the end of 2023.
| Year | Temporary loans |
|---|---|
| 2019 | $0 |
| 2020 | $0 |
| 2021 | $1.0M |
| 2022 | $4.4M |
| 2023 | $6.5M |
Short-term loans usually cost more interest and can be called in. If they roll over year after year, the town is really carrying debt that does not show up as long-term debt.
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 North Middlesex? Send us your answer and we will publish it with this question.
Temporary loans: 2019 $0, 2020 $0, 2021 $1.0M, 2022 $4.4M, 2023 $6.5M.
Ontario Financial Information Return (FIR), 2019 to 2023 · Schedule 70, line 2099 · archived copy
The 2026 budget was adopted by a written decision of the Mayor, Brian Ropp, dated February 18, 2026. It says the Mayor prepared and presented the proposed budget, waived the seven-day response period, and noted that council waived its remaining review period. The decision is issued under section 284.3 of the Municipal Act, 2001 and Ontario Regulation 530/22. We did not read council minutes, so we do not know what council discussed.
Residents are used to a budget being debated and voted on in public. Under this process the budget can be deemed adopted when review periods are waived or expire. That is the Municipal Act's process and not a breach, but it makes it more important that the public can see what council reviewed and when.
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 North Middlesex? Send us your answer and we will publish it with this question.
"Date: February 18, 2026". "Waived the statutory seven- day response period provided under subsection 284( 10) of the Municipal Act, 2001" and "Noted that Council has waived its remaining review period with respect to the Mayor' s 2026 Proposed Budget."
Mayoral Decision No. MD-2026-02 · page 1, Purpose and Whereas clauses
The posted budget's page footers read "Mayors Revised Draft Budget 2026-02-18".
2026 Approved Budget · PDF page 1, footer
"WHEREAS section 284. 16 of the Municipal Act, 2001 and Ontario Regulation 530/ 22".
Municipality of North Middlesex, Mayoral Decision No. MD-2026-02 · page 1, first Whereas clause