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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by hand, Oct 2026DetailsThis is built from public records, which leave a lot out, and some of it may be wrong or out of date.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 South Bruce'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 / South BruceUpdated Oct 7, 2026

Your town, in plain words

How South Bruce uses the money we share.

A clear, checkable guide to South Bruce's budget, taxes and council decisions. A rural municipality in Bruce County, with a mayor, a deputy mayor and five councillors, centred on Mildmay and Teeswater. Every figure links back to the public record.

Your typical 2024 property tax bill$3,011on a $190K home59% Town32% County10% SchoolsSee your tax bill explained →
Town spending, 2024$13MAbout $5,091 per household, up 1.9% from 2023.See the money →
Property tax change+9.3%South Bruce's own property tax came to $6.9M in 2024, against $6.3M in 2023.What changed →

Where it goes

Most of every dollar supports the everyday town.

Explore every service →
Police, fire and safety$4.2M · 32%
Roads and snow$3.6M · 28%
Water, sewers and garbage$2.3M · 18%
Parks, arena and library$1.4M · 11%
Show all 8 servicesShow fewer
Running the town office$1.1M · 8%
Health$169K · 1%
Planning and business$144K · 1%
Social services$85,405 · 1%

Day-to-day spending in 2024, from South Bruce's report to the Province.

A fair comparisonHow does South Bruce compare?Among 74 similar Ontario towns, South Bruce's day-to-day spending per household is on the high side.South Bruce is here · 65 of 74, lowest to highestCompare South Bruce →

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 askingHow decisions are made

How is the $8 million set aside after the nuclear siting process being used, and what rules limit drawing on it?

$8,000,000exit funding set aside in reserves in 2024, per the 2025 budget slides

The 2025 budget slides show $8,000,000 of funding from the Nuclear Waste Management Organization's siting process going into reserves in 2024. Council chose to invest it and use the interest. The 2026 slides call the fund the South Bruce Legacy Fund, say the original $8M principal "remains intact", and plan to use $240,000 of its income, and to draw $46,400 from the fund "to ease overall expense increases". We could not tell from the slides what the written rules for the fund say.

Found by reading the town's own documents · 5 sources

Worth askingSpending level

How will the $7.2 million of water and sewer projects planned for 2026 be paid for?

$7,246,000environment (water and sewer) capital budget for 2026

The 2026 capital slides list $7,246,000 for the environment (water and sewer) group, of which $3,326,000 is the Teeswater Formosa sewer system and $3,505,000 the Teeswater water system. The 2025 slides planned $746,736 of Community Well Being funds from the Nuclear Waste Management Organization for the sewer treatment plant expansion. The 2023 audited statements already showed contractual capital commitments of $16,108,786, up from $5,411,873 the year before. We could not read how the 2026 projects are financed, because the funding table in the slides does not read cleanly.

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

Good to knowRising costs

How much of the rise in the municipal tax levy since 2024 comes from the end of nuclear siting funding?

$254,879added to the 2025 levy by the end of the nuclear siting funding, per the Municipality

The 2025 budget slides list "$254,879 - additional costs to tax levy due to elimination of NWMO funding" as one driver of that year's levy, which rose by $328,548 or 4.8%. The 2026 municipal levy is $7,431,515, up $318,858 or 4.48%. The Municipality has explained part of this itself, so we treat it as context and ask only for the split.

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

Show 4 more questionsShow fewer
Good to knowMoney health

Is provincial funding for South Bruce growing or shrinking?

$868,000Ontario Municipal Partnership Funding in the 2026 budget

The 2025 budget slides say the Municipality faces "reduced support under the Ontario Municipal Partnership Fund". The same deck lists "-$86,700 - additional revenue under the Ontario Municipal Partnership Funding" as a reason the levy rose less, and the 2026 slides list "-$80,800 in additional revenue" from the same program. The 2026 slides put this program at $868,000 of the year's operating grants.

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

Good to knowRecord-keeping

Is the 2026 water base fee $670 or $675?

$670 or $675two water base fees printed in the same 2026 slide deck

The 2026 budget slides give two different water base fees. Early in the deck, "Water Base Fees are $670 per year; up $25 or 3.88%". Near the end, "Mildmay & Teeswater Water Distribution base fees - $675.00, increased by 3.88% or $25 per year". A $25 rise of 3.88% fits a starting fee of $645 and a new fee of $670 (worked out by us).

Found by reading the town's own documents · 2 sources

Good to knowOpenness

Why were the 2023 audited statements signed almost a year after year-end, and where are the 2025 statements?

December 10, 2024date of the auditor's report on the 2023 statements

The 2023 statements carry an auditor's report dated December 10, 2024, and a management statement of the same date. When we read the Municipality's financial statements page on October 7, 2026, the newest statements posted were for 2024 and we found none for 2025. The 2024 file we downloaded is a scan with no readable text, so we could not read it.

Found by reading the town's own documents · 2 sources

2024 tax year · South Bruce, Ontario

Your tax bill, worked out.

Enter your home's assessed value to see roughly what you pay in property tax each year, who gets it, and what South Bruce's share pays for.

Ontario still uses property values from January 1, 2016 for tax, so your assessed value is probably well below what your home would sell for today.

It is on your property assessment notice from MPAC, and on your tax bill. We filled in the typical value in South Bruce.

Source

a year in property tax, at 2024 rates

  • South Bruce
  • County or region
  • Schools

South Bruce council sets only its own share. County or region sets its share, the Province sets the school rate.

See what your South Bruce share pays forHide the breakdown

Roughly what your South Bruce share pays for

Source
  • Police, fire and safety
  • Roads and snow
  • Parks, arena and library
  • Running the town office
  • Planning and business
  • Health

An estimate. It uses the residential tax rate, and splits South Bruce's share by what each service cost in 2024 after its own fees and grants (for example, water bills pay for much of a water system). Real bills also depend on your property class, local charges and any rebates.

  • 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.

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