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by hand, Oct 2026DetailsThis is built from public records, which leave a lot out, and some of it may be wrong or out of date.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 Scugog'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.
A clear, checkable guide to Scugog's budget, taxes and council decisions. A township in Durham Region, Ontario, with a mayor, a regional councillor and five ward councillors. Every figure links back to the public record.
$7,976,005taxes receivable at the end of 2025, up from $4,437,493 at the end of 2023
Taxes receivable are property taxes billed but not yet paid. The statements show $4,437,493 at the end of 2023, $6,076,644 at the end of 2024 and $7,976,005 at the end of 2025. That is $3,538,512 more than two years earlier (worked out by us). Penalties and interest charged on late taxes were $1,026,608 in 2025 against a budget of $650,000, and the 2026 budget raises the amount it expects from penalties again. We did not find an explanation from the Township for the rise in unpaid taxes.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 3 sources
$7,473,000planned transfers to reserves in the 2026 operating budget
A reserve is money set aside for later, like a savings account for roads, buildings and vehicles. The 2026 operating budget puts $7,473,000 into reserves, up from $6,700,700, out of $30,542,600 of total operating expenses. The Township explains the largest part: a 3% levy for roads ($616,500) and 0.5% each for buildings and vehicles. Separately, the Finance budget shows $1,100,000 of casino (OLG) revenue and $1,200,000 of transfers into a reserve the budget calls "MP Reserve". The budget also draws on an "MP" reserve for operating costs, including staffing. We did not find a definition of "MP Reserve" in the documents we read.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 5 sources
$13,345,356development charge money held at the end of 2025
Development charges are fees paid by builders to cover the cost of growth, such as roads. The statements say this money is externally restricted. At the end of 2025 the Township held $13,345,356 of it. The statements say it has put "a portion" into principal protected notes, a type of investment that guards the amount put in and pays a return linked to something else, such as a market index. The notes were worth $4,417,203 at year end, from a cost of $4,347,180. In 2025 the fund received $1,158,490 and used $1,549,991. The statements say gains on the notes are added to the restricted balance, so they cannot go into general revenue.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 3 sources
$8.21 millionthe Mayor's latest cost estimate for the cancelled project, up from $2.0 million
The Township says council voted in December 2024 not to go ahead with the Lake Scugog Enhancement Project, after a confidential report in closed session. The Mayor said the cost estimate had grown from $2.0 million to $8.21 million over more than eight years, and that permits and land access were unsettled. Council told staff to look at a cheaper option and to work out funding agreements and "outstanding financial obligations or commitments" with partners. We did not find the total spent on the project, or the result of those talks, in the documents we read. The 2026 capital budget has $216,000 for design of a clean-out of a nearby stormwater pond, which is described as routine upkeep, not as the replacement project.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 2 sources
$700,000planned cost of the Queen Street work, now delayed from 2026 to 2031
The 2025 capital plan listed the rehabilitation of Queen Street between Water Street and Simcoe Street in Port Perry for 2026 at $700,000, half from the roads reserve fund and half from development charges. In a mayoral directive dated November 27, 2025, the Mayor ordered it delayed to 2031, along with another project (Perry Street), and moved three other road projects into the 2026 budget. The directive gives reasons: the weak economy for local businesses, concerns raised by residents and businesses about the Queen Street work, and the Township's ability to pay for roads from its capital reserves. The Township's strong mayor page says the Mayor now proposes the budget, which council can amend. The Queen Street project is not in the 2026 to 2030 project list in the 2026 capital budget.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 4 sources
Scugog spent $2.7M on running the town office in 2019 and $4.9M in 2025. Prices only went up about 21% in that time. Only 7 of 36 similar towns had faster growth here.
Found automatically from the town's financial reports · 3 sources
At the end of 2025, $8.0M of property tax had been billed but not paid. That is 12% of everything billed. Only 5 of 36 similar towns had a higher share. A year earlier it was $6.1M.
Found automatically from the town's financial reports · 2 sources
$7,050,050surplus in 2025, against a budgeted deficit of $3,514,652
A surplus is what is left when a year's revenue is more than its spending. In the audited statements, the 2025 budget shows a deficit of $3,514,652 and the actual result is a surplus of $7,050,050. For 2024 the budget shows a deficit of $7,620,952 and the actual result is a surplus of $8,406,928. Together the two actual surpluses are $15,456,978 (worked out by us). In 2025, revenue came in $3,259,188 above the budget and expenses $7,305,514 below it (both worked out by us). The Township has explained part of this: the budget is prepared on a different basis from the statements. It treats every purchase of a building, road or vehicle as an expense, while the statements spread the cost over the years the asset is used.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 4 sources
$4,200difference in the 2024 accumulated surplus between the 2024 and 2025 statements (worked out by us)
In the 2025 statements, a few figures disagree with each other or with the 2024 statements as first published. These are small against $124,732,814 of accumulated surplus, but a reader cannot tell which is right. The 2025 statements show the 2024 accumulated surplus as $117,682,764, while the 2024 statements show $117,686,964, a difference of $4,200 (worked out by us). Note 10 in the 2025 statements prints $117,686,694 for 2024. The 2024 surplus is $8,406,928 on one page of the 2025 statements and $8,402,728 on another. Investments and deferred revenue for 2024 were each raised by $226,650 (worked out by us), which matches a gain Note 5 attributes to 2024. The only explanation we found is a general line that prior-year figures were reclassified.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 5 sources
Where your tax bill goes
A property tax bill in Scugog pays for three governments. Only part of it goes to the town, and that part is what Scugog council controls.
Tax bill split: Scugog 32%, County or region 54%, Schools 14%
$66.4Mraised in 2025
Scugog32%
County or region54%
Schools14%
How Scugog's share of the bill compares with similar towns
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