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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by hand, Oct 2026DetailsThis is built from public records, which leave a lot out, and some of it may be wrong or out of date.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 Oakville'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 Oakville'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: $627M

Where the town's money came from in 2025.

Oakville revenue by source, 2025
  • Property taxes$294M49%
  • Grants for specific projects$33.1M6%
  • Fees people pay$39.4M7%
  • Licences and rent$26.8M4%
  • Other$186M31%
  • Everything else$21M3%
Show as a table
CategoryAmountShare
Property taxes$293,858,78449.0%
Grants for specific projects$33,129,5575.5%
Fees people pay$39,411,4616.6%
Licences and rent$26,751,2794.5%
Other$185,904,25131.0%
Everything else$20,978,3443.5%
Total$600,033,676100%

What each source means

Property taxes
What home and business owners pay each year, based on what their property is worth.
Grants for specific projects
Money from Ontario or Canada that must be spent on a certain thing, often a road or building.
Fees people pay
Water and sewer bills, dump fees, arena rentals, permits and similar charges.
Licences and rent
Dog tags, licences, and rent from town-owned property.
Other
Interest earned, donations, sales of land and equipment.

Money out: $346M on services

Day-to-day spending in 2025, by service. On top of this, the town recorded $54.6M of "wear and tear" on things it owns. That is an accounting cost, not cash out the door, so it is left out here.

Oakville spending by service, 2025
  • Running the town office$57.5M17%
  • Police, fire and safety$65.2M19%
  • Roads and snow$92M27%
  • Water, sewers and garbage$6.3M2%
  • Health$4.3M1%
  • Parks, arena and library$92M27%
  • Planning and business$28.8M8%
Show as a table
CategoryAmountShare
Running the town office$57,537,80616.6%
Police, fire and safety$65,181,76018.8%
Roads and snow$91,979,80426.6%
Water, sewers and garbage$6,251,7511.8%
Health$4,295,5411.2%
Parks, arena and library$92,014,24226.6%
Planning and business$28,764,9688.3%
Total$346,025,872100%

Parks, arena and library

$92M

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

+32% since 2019 (prices rose 21%)

Parks, arena and library broken down
  1. Parks$27M+27%

    Parks, beaches, trails and green spaces.

  2. Arena and buildings$25.4M+51%

    The arena, pool, community centre and halls.

  3. Programs$16.4M+30%

    Classes, camps and activities.

  4. Library$12.7M+30%

    The public library.

  5. Arts and culture$5.1M+4%

    Festivals, arts and heritage.

  6. Golf, marina, ski hill$4.6M+35%

    Town-owned golf course, marina or ski hill.

  7. Museums$795K+20%

    Local museums.

Show as a table
ItemAmountChange
Parks$26,954,789+26.9%
Arena and buildings$25,379,368+50.5%
Programs$16,447,618+30.5%
Library$12,685,283+29.7%
Arts and culture$5,132,234+3.7%
Golf, marina, ski hill$4,619,534+35.4%
Museums$795,416+20.0%

Roads and snow

$92M

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

+27% since 2019 (prices rose 21%)

Roads and snow broken down
  1. Public transit$38.5M+41%

    Buses.

  2. Roadsides and signs$17.1M+61%

    Ditches, signs, line painting and roadside brush.

  3. Snow ploughing$10.5M+53%

    Ploughing, salting and sanding roads in winter.

  4. Paved roads$8.6M−35%

    Fixing and repaving paved roads.

  5. Parking$6.2M+52%

    Town parking lots and meters.

  6. Accessible transit$5.8M+36%

    Rides for people who cannot use regular buses.

  7. Sidewalk snow$2.7M+48%

    Clearing sidewalks and parking lots.

  8. Street lights$2.0M−3%

    Power and repairs for street lights.

  9. Bridges and culverts$592K−74%

    Keeping bridges and the pipes under roads safe.

  10. Other transportation$23,194

    Other transportation costs.

Show as a table
ItemAmountChange
Public transit$38,525,770+41.3%
Roadsides and signs$17,131,993+60.8%
Snow ploughing$10,458,184+53.4%
Paved roads$8,553,878−34.9%
Parking$6,159,514+51.8%
Accessible transit$5,804,934+36.2%
Sidewalk snow$2,681,452+47.7%
Street lights$2,049,017−3.2%
Bridges and culverts$591,868−74.4%
Other transportation$23,194–

Police, fire and safety

$65.2M

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

+42% since 2019 (prices rose 21%)

Police, fire and safety broken down
  1. Fire department$51.3M+42%

    Firefighters, trucks and fire halls.

  2. Building permits$9.1M+24%

    Checking that new buildings are safe.

  3. By-law and animal control$4.7M+88%

    Enforcing town rules, like noise, parking and dogs.

  4. Traffic court$19,496

    Handling tickets and fines.

  5. Emergency planning$16,237

    Getting ready for floods, storms and other emergencies.

Show as a table
ItemAmountChange
Fire department$51,290,833+42.0%
Building permits$9,120,761+24.3%
By-law and animal control$4,734,433+88.3%
Traffic court$19,496–
Emergency planning$16,237–

Running the town office

$57.5M

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.

+38% since 2019 (prices rose 21%)

Running the town office broken down
  1. Office and administration$33.7M+76%

    Office staff, finance, IT, insurance, legal and the town hall. Towns share this cost out across other services.

  2. Senior management$20.9M+11%

    The top managers who run the town day to day.

  3. Council$2.9M−22%

    Pay and expenses for the mayor and councillors, and council meetings.

Show as a table
ItemAmountChange
Office and administration$33,725,422+76.5%
Senior management$20,936,393+10.9%
Council$2,875,991−21.7%

Planning and business

$28.8M

Deciding what can be built where, and trying to bring businesses and visitors to town.

+22% since 2019 (prices rose 21%)

Planning and business broken down
  1. Planning and zoning$15.5M+26%

    Deciding what can be built where.

  2. Farms and forests$8.9M+14%

    Programs for farms and forests.

  3. Business and tourism$4.4M+22%

    Attracting businesses and visitors, and helping local shops.

Show as a table
ItemAmountChange
Planning and zoning$15,484,325+26.1%
Farms and forests$8,894,866+14.1%
Business and tourism$4,385,777+22.4%

Water, sewers and garbage

$6.3M

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

+25% since 2019 (prices rose 21%)

Water, sewers and garbage broken down
  1. Storm drains$5.3M+30%

    Drains that carry away rain water.

  2. Other environment$968K+3%

    Other environmental costs.

Show as a table
ItemAmountChange
Storm drains$5,283,621+29.7%
Other environment$968,130+3.0%

Health

$4.3M

Public health, ambulances and cemeteries.

+11% since 2019 (prices rose 21%)

Health broken down
  1. Hospitals$2.8M−1%

    Money given to hospitals.

  2. Cemeteries$1.5M+44%

    Looking after town cemeteries.

Show as a table
ItemAmountChange
Hospitals$2,819,508−0.8%
Cemeteries$1,476,033+43.6%

What the money bought

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

Spending by type
  1. Staff pay and benefits$215M

    Wages, benefits and pensions for town workers.

  2. Outside companies$96.4M

    Work the town pays other companies to do, like policing, paving or consultants.

  3. Supplies and utilities$23.6M

    Gravel, salt, fuel, electricity, heating, office supplies and repairs.

  4. Interest on loans$5.5M

    The extra money paid to lenders for money the town borrowed.

  5. Money given to others$4.4M

    Grants and payments to other groups, like the conservation authority.

  6. Rent and money costs$1.4M

    Renting equipment or space, bank fees, and some accounting costs.

Show as a table
ItemAmount
Staff pay and benefits$214,761,282
Outside companies$96,375,012
Supplies and utilities$23,570,734
Interest on loans$5,510,000
Money given to others$4,366,497
Rent and money costs$1,442,347

Staff

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

YearFull-timePart-timeSeasonal
20191240292100
2020125530086
2021132240868
2022133344174
2023124642980
2024126742082
20251358373217

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.

Money in and day-to-day spending by year
$627M
Show as a table
YearMoney inDay-to-day spending
2019$392M$262M
2020$411M$232M
2021$376M$235M
2022$566M$248M
2023$516M$285M
2024$602M$315M
2025$627M$346M

Town property tax

Up 42% since 2019. Prices rose 21%.

Town property tax by year
$294M
Show as a table
YearTown property tax
2019$207M
2020$215M
2021$223M
2022$231M
2023$250M
2024$270M
2025$294M

Savings (reserves)

Money set aside for repairs, equipment and emergencies.

Reserves by year
$310M
Show as a table
YearSavings
2019$176M
2020$235M
2021$295M
2022$340M
2023$306M
2024$296M
2025$310M

What the town owes

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

Debt by year
$143M
Show as a table
YearLong-term loansTemporary loans
2019$110M$0
2020$108M$0
2021$101M$0
2022$106M$0
2023$101M$0
2024$145M$0
2025$143M$0

Building new things

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

Capital spending and wear by year
$240M
Show as a table
YearBuilt or boughtWore out (amortization)
2019$100M$43M
2020$147M$48.2M
2021$71.5M$47.8M
2022$196M$46.6M
2023$129M$47.7M
2024$205M$50.4M
2025$240M$54.6M

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.