Not the full picture. Built from public records, which leave things out.Older reportDetailsThis is built from public records, which leave a lot out, and some of it may be wrong or out of date.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 An older report. We have no 2024 report for Wilmot in the Province's latest release, so these pages use its 2023 report. It may simply be filed late. Read by hand. We read Wilmot'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.
Questions · 8 so far
Things worth asking about
We read Wilmot's financial reports and meeting minutes, and compared its numbers with 53 similar Ontario towns. These are the things that stood out.
What these are, and what they are not. A question here means a number or practice is unusual, or harder to see than it should be. It does not mean anyone did anything wrong. Most unusual numbers turn out to have ordinary explanations, and every question lists some. The only way to know is to ask.
Worth asking
Worth asking
There may well be a good reason. It is still worth asking what it is.
April 29, 2025date of the auditor's report on the 2023 statements, 16 months after year end (worked out by us)
Audited financial statements are the yearly report card on a town's money. The newest ones the Township posts are for the year ended December 31, 2023. The auditor's report on them is dated April 29, 2025, about 16 months after the year ended (worked out by us). The auditor gave a "qualified" opinion, which means the statements are fair except for one problem. The problem: the Township had not worked out what it may owe to clean up asbestos in its buildings and to close its gravel pit when it is done, which a new accounting rule asked towns to do starting in 2023. We did not find statements for 2024 or 2025. The Province's open data also has no 2024 or 2025 return from Wilmot, while 236 municipalities have filed one for 2025. The Township's 2026 budget book says it is working to restore regular financial reporting and to finish "outstanding provincial reporting requirements", and it says it had no in-house accounting capacity.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 6 sources
$15,743,168Township tax levy in the 2026 budget; the levy rose 18.22% in 2025 and 9.1% in 2026
The levy is the part of the tax bill that pays for the Township's own services (not the Region or the schools). For 2025 the Township says it approved a levy increase of 18.22%, or $208 for the average property, down from a first proposal of $580. For 2026 the budget page shows 9.1%, about $217 for the average home. Together that is about 29% in two years (worked out by us). The Township gives its reasons: years of low reserves, costs that were left out of past budgets, and a rule from Council to raise the capital levy 9% a year for three years. It also says growth in new homes helped keep rates down in earlier years and that this "relied on future growth and reliance on drawing from reserves".
Found by reading the town's own documents · 7 sources
($5,914,272)development charges and subdivider contributions fund at the end of 2023, printed as a negative
Development charges are fees collected on new homes and buildings to pay for the roads, sewers and parks growth needs. The Township keeps this money in an "obligatory reserve fund" that the law says can only be used for those purposes. At the end of 2023 the statements print that fund as negative $5,914,272, up from negative $44,527 a year earlier. A second fund, for the Building Department, is also negative at $2,012,626. All the obligatory funds together are negative $4,459,610. A negative fund means more was spent on growth projects than has been collected so far, so other money is covering the gap. In 2023 the Township also issued $5,806,000 of new debentures (long-term loans). Its schedule shows $2,030,624 of the next five years of loan payments are planned to come from development charges. The 2026 budget says the Township will borrow $4.8M more.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 4 sources
$916,1852026 operating expenses in Corporate and Financial Services, up from $433,350, which includes budget and audit help
In October 2025 the Mayor, using strong mayor powers, engaged the accounting firm KPMG to lead the 2026 budget and a long-term financial plan. The Township's release says this "will not create any new cost to taxpayers" because it is "fully funded through organizational savings" from staff vacancies. The 2026 budget book says the Township had no in-house accounting capacity and that KPMG did the line-by-line review. The Corporate and Financial Services budget for operating expenses rises from $433,350 to $916,185 (111%), and its notes list help with the 2026 budget, the long-term plan and audit services, among other things. We did not find the KPMG fee in any document we read.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 3 sources
Towns keep savings (called reserves) to pay for new trucks, roof repairs and surprises. Wilmot had $8.1M saved at the end of 2023, down from $8.3M in 2019. That is 48% of one year's spending. Only 6 of 53 similar towns had less, compared with what they spend.
Found automatically from the town's financial reports · 2 sources
$540,000difference between two printed amounts for the same hydro merger gain (worked out by us)
In the 2023 audited statements, the Statement of Operations lists expenses by service area and totals $24,647,751. A note near the back (Note 16, segmented information) lists the same total by service area, but most of the service totals do not match. For example, protection services is $3,228,843 in the statement and $2,176,429 in the note. Several of the note's service totals equal the budget column of the statement. Separately, Note 6 says the Township recorded a gain on a 2022 hydro merger of $1,711,533, while the statements and the table in that same note print $1,171,533. The difference is $540,000 (worked out by us), which looks like swapped digits.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 3 sources
$21,273,881the Township's investment in Enova Energy Corporation at the end of 2023
Wilmot owns 4.49% of Enova Energy Corporation, the local electricity company formed in a 2022 merger. The statements carry the investment at $21,273,881, made up of shares at $14,648,535, long-term notes of $5,964,566 and $660,780 of accumulated earnings. In 2023 the Township's share of the company's income was $579,255 and it received $302,325 in dividends. This is not a problem on its face. The stake is larger than the Township's cash of $17,858,505, and it is not cash that can be spent.
Found by reading the town's own documents · 2 sources
April 29, 2025date of the auditor's report on the 2023 statements, 16 months after year end (worked out by us)
Audited financial statements are the yearly report card on a town's money. The newest ones the Township posts are for the year ended December 31, 2023. The auditor's report on them is dated April 29, 2025, about 16 months after the year ended (worked out by us). The auditor gave a "qualified" opinion, which means the statements are fair except for one problem. The problem: the Township had not worked out what it may owe to clean up asbestos in its buildings and to close its gravel pit when it is done, which a new accounting rule asked towns to do starting in 2023. We did not find statements for 2024 or 2025. The Province's open data also has no 2024 or 2025 return from Wilmot, while 236 municipalities have filed one for 2025. The Township's 2026 budget book says it is working to restore regular financial reporting and to finish "outstanding provincial reporting requirements", and it says it had no in-house accounting capacity.
Why it matters
Residents, lenders and the Province rely on audited statements to know whether a town's money is in good order. Two years without them leaves the most recent audited picture of Wilmot's finances at the end of 2023, before the large levy increases that followed.
It could be because…
The Township describes restructuring in its finance division in 2025 and says it had no in-house accounting capacity, so the delay may come from staffing, not from any problem with the money.
The 2024 and 2025 audits may be under way, and the statements may be posted somewhere we did not look.
The asbestos and gravel pit cleanup costs are hard to estimate. The statements say the Township is negotiating with a third party to take on the gravel pit's closure costs.
Some of the delay may sit with the auditor's schedule or the new accounting rule on cleanup obligations, which the statements say started in 2023, rather than with the money itself.
Questions you could ask
When will the audited 2024 and 2025 financial statements be finished and posted, and when will the Township file its 2024 and 2025 Financial Information Returns?
Has the asbestos and gravel pit cleanup cost been worked out, and how large is it?
What caused the 16-month delay on the 2023 audit, and what has changed so it does not happen again?
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 Wilmot?Send us your answer and we will publish it with this question.
The evidence
Independent Auditors' Report, Qualified Opinion: "The Township has not quantified the extent of asset retirement obligations it may have in relation to asbestos remediation and an owned gravel pit, which constitutes a departure from Canadian public sector accounting standards. The effect on the financial statements of this departure has not been determined."
Note 8, Asset Retirement Obligations: "No provision has been made in the Financial Statements for asset retirement obligations in respect of the Township's facilities." On the gravel pit: "At this time, no estimate of site remediation costs has been determined, and no provision has been made". It adds: "During 2024, the Township will carry out further facility inspections and cost estimates in respect of its asset retirement obligations".
The "Recent Financial Statements" list on the Township's page runs from "2023 Financial Statement" back to "2016 Financial Statement". It has no 2024 or 2025 entry (page read October 5, 2026).
Wilmot's open Financial Information Return data, as we hold it, covers 2019 to 2023 and has no 2024 or 2025 return. In the same data, 236 municipalities filed a return for the newest year.
Corporate and Financial Services, 2026 Priorities, Financial Services: "Restoring regular and reliable financial reporting to Council, the community, and the province". Key variances: increased contracted services include "completion of outstanding provincial reporting requirements" and "updated audit services". Acknowledgements: "At a time when the Township did not have in-house accounting capacity, KPMG's professional expertise was essential".
$15,743,168Township tax levy in the 2026 budget; the levy rose 18.22% in 2025 and 9.1% in 2026
The levy is the part of the tax bill that pays for the Township's own services (not the Region or the schools). For 2025 the Township says it approved a levy increase of 18.22%, or $208 for the average property, down from a first proposal of $580. For 2026 the budget page shows 9.1%, about $217 for the average home. Together that is about 29% in two years (worked out by us). The Township gives its reasons: years of low reserves, costs that were left out of past budgets, and a rule from Council to raise the capital levy 9% a year for three years. It also says growth in new homes helped keep rates down in earlier years and that this "relied on future growth and reliance on drawing from reserves".
Why it matters
Large increases can be fair if they repay years of underfunding. Residents will want to know how much of each increase is a one-time catch-up, how much is permanent and new, and when the increases stop.
It could be because…
Reserves were low and the Township says earlier budgets left costs out, so part of the rise repays a gap that already existed.
Council directed a 9% a year increase in the capital part of the levy for three years, so some of the rise is planned and will end.
The 2026 book says 2026 compensation includes a 2.6% cost-of-living increase and that a salary-gapping reduction was removed, which lifts some lines without adding services.
Inflation was 2.9% (median change 2024 to 2025, per the budget book), and the budget counts only $119,771 of new levy from growth in assessment.
Questions you could ask
How much of the 2025 and 2026 levy increases is one-time catch-up (reserves, costs left out of past budgets), and how much is permanent new spending?
The January 30, 2026 release says 9.22 per cent after Council's amendments, and the budget page says 9.1 per cent. Which is the final figure, and what changed?
What levy increases does the long-term financial plan expect for 2027 and after?
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 Wilmot?Send us your answer and we will publish it with this question.
The evidence
"The total 2025 budget for Wilmot Township is $29,278,441, reflecting a tax levy increase of 18.22%. For the average property, this represents an annual increase of $208 (or $17.33 per month). This is a significant reduction from the originally proposed increase of $580 per year ($48.35 per month)." It also says the budget "begins to address years of financial decisions that have resulted in low reserves, underfunded operational costs, and service gaps."
2026 Budget, Average Residential Impact: "Property tax increase: 9.1 per cent, or approximately $217 annually". Water rate increase 5 per cent (about $30), wastewater 6 per cent (about $45). "The 2026 budget represents a combined annual increase of $292 for the average household, based on a median assessed value of $426,000".
Historic Wilmot Levy: "Growth in assessment and new development helped absorb rising costs, allowing rates to remain stable while overall service costs grew. Over time, this approach relied on future growth and reliance on drawing from reserves." The chart on this page is an image and we did not use it.
"The 2026 budget includes a 2.6% cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) applied across the organization". A "compensation gapping" reduction in the prior year's budget "was removed" for 2026. "Inflation 2.9%: CPI median % change between 2024 and 2025".
"The 2026 budget continues Council's direction established in the 2025 budget to increase the capital levy by 9% annually over three years." The Township will contribute $1.5M to reserves and borrow $4.8M, and its budget snapshot gives debt financing of $4,865,381.
After the January 29, 2026 special meeting: Council amendments (removing $65,000 from the Mayor and Council budget as a duplicate cost, and eliminating the Mayor and Council cost-of-living increase) "reduced the proposed tax increase from 9.7 per cent to 9.22 per cent."
($5,914,272)development charges and subdivider contributions fund at the end of 2023, printed as a negative
Development charges are fees collected on new homes and buildings to pay for the roads, sewers and parks growth needs. The Township keeps this money in an "obligatory reserve fund" that the law says can only be used for those purposes. At the end of 2023 the statements print that fund as negative $5,914,272, up from negative $44,527 a year earlier. A second fund, for the Building Department, is also negative at $2,012,626. All the obligatory funds together are negative $4,459,610. A negative fund means more was spent on growth projects than has been collected so far, so other money is covering the gap. In 2023 the Township also issued $5,806,000 of new debentures (long-term loans). Its schedule shows $2,030,624 of the next five years of loan payments are planned to come from development charges. The 2026 budget says the Township will borrow $4.8M more.
Why it matters
If growth slows, development charges may not arrive fast enough to repay what was spent ahead of them. The gap would then be covered by taxes, user fees or other reserves. Residents will want to know the size of the gap now, and how and when it closes.
It could be because…
Growth projects are often built before the fees arrive, and the fund is meant to be repaid as new homes are built.
The Township may have planned the 2023 debentures to be repaid from development charges, which the payment schedule shows.
A negative balance can also come from how the Township has accounted for grants and projects, and the statements say a 2023 accounting change moved unspent capital funding.
The 2023 statements (Note 15) describe a change in how unspent capital funding and grants are recorded, which can move balances between funds.
Questions you could ask
What are the balances of the development charge and building department funds at the end of 2024 and 2025, and how will the negative balances be repaid?
Which projects were paid for ahead of development charges, and what is the plan if development slows?
Does the Township charge the development charge fund interest on the money other funds are covering, and where is that shown?
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 Wilmot?Send us your answer and we will publish it with this question.
Note 11, Net long-term liabilities: debentures issued in 2022, 8,549,000 at year end; debentures issued in 2023, 5,806,000; balance after ratepayers 14,355,000 (2022: 8,845,000). Principal due 2024 to 2028 totals 3,060,342, of which "From Development Charges" is 2,030,624.
"To fund the remaining portion of the 2026 capital program, the Township will borrow $4.8M." Debt is issued through the Region of Waterloo. The Budget Snapshot gives "Debt financing: $4,865,381". The budget says it "does not have a fully funded 10 year or long-term capital plan".
$916,1852026 operating expenses in Corporate and Financial Services, up from $433,350, which includes budget and audit help
In October 2025 the Mayor, using strong mayor powers, engaged the accounting firm KPMG to lead the 2026 budget and a long-term financial plan. The Township's release says this "will not create any new cost to taxpayers" because it is "fully funded through organizational savings" from staff vacancies. The 2026 budget book says the Township had no in-house accounting capacity and that KPMG did the line-by-line review. The Corporate and Financial Services budget for operating expenses rises from $433,350 to $916,185 (111%), and its notes list help with the 2026 budget, the long-term plan and audit services, among other things. We did not find the KPMG fee in any document we read.
Why it matters
A consultant's fee is public money. Residents will want to know the amount, whether it was competitively bid, and whether "no new cost" holds once the long-term plan and any follow-on work are counted.
It could be because…
The Township says the vacancy savings pay for it, so the cost may truly net out in 2025.
The Township had a gap in accounting staff and told residents it needed outside help to produce a trustworthy budget and catch up on reporting.
The budget increase in this department is spread across the municipal election, records management and audit services, so KPMG may be a small part of it.
Questions you could ask
What is the total KPMG has been paid, or is contracted to be paid, for the 2026 budget and the long-term financial plan?
How was KPMG chosen, was the work put out for bids, and under what purchasing rule?
How much of the Corporate and Financial Services increase of $482,835 in operating expenses is for outside consultants?
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 Wilmot?Send us your answer and we will publish it with this question.
"Wilmot Mayor Natasha Salonen, using the authority available under strong mayor powers and in collaboration with the Corporate Leadership Team, has engaged KPMG to lead the development of the Township's 2026 budget and a long-term financial plan." "Importantly, the engagement will not create any new cost to taxpayers. It is being fully funded through organizational savings achieved from internal vacancies, making the initiative net neutral to the Township's operating budget."
The Budget Process: "the Mayor engaged KPMG to provide independent financial expertise". Budget Process Timeline: "Mayor engaged KPMG to bring financial expertise and support budget development" (September to October). Acknowledgements: "At a time when the Township did not have in-house accounting capacity, KPMG's professional expertise was essential".
Corporate and Financial Services, Operating Department Budget: Compensation 2,049,400 (2025) and 2,325,600 (2026); Operating Expenses 433,350 and 916,185 (111%); expenditures 2,286,700 and 2,945,313 (29%). Key variances list "assistance with the 2026 budget process, completion of outstanding provincial reporting requirements, development of the Long-Term Financial Plan, asset management coordination services, and updated audit services".
Wilmot spent $2.4M on running the town office in 2019 and $3.7M in 2023. Prices only went up about 16% in that time.
Why did the cost of running the town office grow 52% in 4 years?
Running the town office
Prices (inflation)
+0%+20%+40%+60%+80%
+52%
20192020202120222023
Show as a table
Year
Running the town office
Prices (inflation)
2019
+0%
+0%
2020
+32%
+1%
2021
+41%
+4%
2022
+69%
+11%
2023
+52%
+16%
Change since the first year shown. The grey line is how much prices rose overall, for comparison.
Why it matters
Money spent running the office is money not spent on roads, water or safety. When office costs grow much faster than the services people see, it is fair to ask what the extra money is buying.
It could be because…
The town added a service, a building or staff that residents asked for.
Costs were moved from another area, so the total did not really change.
Accounting rules changed how costs are sorted.
Large one-time costs, like a study, lawsuit or repair, landed in one year.
Questions you could ask
What did the extra $1.3M a year pay for?
Why did office and administration go from $1.5M to $2.5M?
Was each increase approved by council as a separate decision, or did it happen through the yearly 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 Wilmot?Send us your answer and we will publish it with this question.
The evidence
Running the town office: 2019 $2.4M, 2020 $3.2M, 2021 $3.4M, 2022 $4.1M, 2023 $3.7M.
Towns keep savings (called reserves) to pay for new trucks, roof repairs and surprises. Wilmot had $8.1M saved at the end of 2023, down from $8.3M in 2019. That is 48% of one year's spending. Only 6 of 53 similar towns had less, compared with what they spend.
Does Wilmot have enough saved for repairs and emergencies?
$0$2.0M$4.0M$6.0M$8.0M$10M
$8.1M
20192020202120222023
Show as a table
Year
Savings (reserves)
2019
$8.3M
2020
$8.6M
2021
$6.3M
2022
$5.5M
2023
$8.1M
Why it matters
With little saved, a broken bridge or a storm has to be paid for with a sudden tax increase or a loan. Low savings can also mean past budgets were balanced by spending savings instead of facing the real cost.
It could be because…
The town spent savings on purpose, on projects that were planned and saved up for.
Some savings were used to match grant money, which brings in more than it costs.
The town has a plan to rebuild its savings.
Questions you could ask
Does the town have a written reserve policy with a target amount?
What were the savings spent on between 2019 and 2023?
What is the plan to rebuild them, and by 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 Wilmot?Send us your answer and we will publish it with this question.
$540,000difference between two printed amounts for the same hydro merger gain (worked out by us)
In the 2023 audited statements, the Statement of Operations lists expenses by service area and totals $24,647,751. A note near the back (Note 16, segmented information) lists the same total by service area, but most of the service totals do not match. For example, protection services is $3,228,843 in the statement and $2,176,429 in the note. Several of the note's service totals equal the budget column of the statement. Separately, Note 6 says the Township recorded a gain on a 2022 hydro merger of $1,711,533, while the statements and the table in that same note print $1,171,533. The difference is $540,000 (worked out by us), which looks like swapped digits.
Why it matters
Small mistakes in audited statements are normal, but a reader cannot tell which number is right without asking.
It could be because…
The note may include internal transfers between departments, which move cost from one service to another (the note has an "Internal Transfers" row).
The gain figure may be a typing slip in the note text only, since the table and the statement agree.
The statements were finished in a year of heavy staff change at the Township.
Questions you could ask
Which service-area split is right for 2023 expenses, the statement's or the note's, and why do they differ?
Is the gain on the 2022 hydro merger $1,171,533 or $1,711,533, and will the Township correct the note?
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 Wilmot?Send us your answer and we will publish it with this question.
The evidence
Statement of Operations, 2023 Actual, expenses: Protection to persons and property 3,228,843; Environmental services 3,222,326; Health services 90,492; Planning and development 471,478; total expenses 24,647,751. In the same statement, the 2023 Budget column prints 2,176,429, 7,026,299, 91,435 and 1,140,996 for those four lines.
Note 16, segmented information, total expenses by segment: General Government 3,911,558; Protection Services 2,176,429; Transportation Services 6,647,383; Environmental Services 4,026,664; Health Services 91,435; Recreation & Culture 6,653,286; Development Services 1,140,996; total 24,647,751.
Note 6: "the Township recorded a gain on merger from its prior interest in Waterloo North Hydro Holding Corporation of $1,711,533 during the 2022 fiscal year." The continuity table on the same page prints "Gain on merger of hydro utilities" 1,171,533, and the Statement of Operations also prints 1,171,533.
$21,273,881the Township's investment in Enova Energy Corporation at the end of 2023
Wilmot owns 4.49% of Enova Energy Corporation, the local electricity company formed in a 2022 merger. The statements carry the investment at $21,273,881, made up of shares at $14,648,535, long-term notes of $5,964,566 and $660,780 of accumulated earnings. In 2023 the Township's share of the company's income was $579,255 and it received $302,325 in dividends. This is not a problem on its face. The stake is larger than the Township's cash of $17,858,505, and it is not cash that can be spent.
Why it matters
The Township has raised its levy and borrowed while holding a $21 million stake. Residents may reasonably want to know what the stake is for, what it pays, and whether Council has discussed it as part of the long-term plan.
It could be because…
Hydro shares are a long-term holding that pays steady dividends and holds value, and cities commonly keep them for that reason.
Selling or borrowing against the shares may have tax, legal or contract limits that the statements do not describe.
The merger that formed Enova happened in 2022, so dividends in its first full year may be lower than later years.
Questions you could ask
What does the Township plan to do with its Enova shares and notes, and has Council discussed selling any of them?
Where do the dividends and note interest go in the budget, and how much did Enova pay in 2024 and 2025?
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 Wilmot?Send us your answer and we will publish it with this question.
The evidence
Note 6: investment is Enova common shares, initial valuation 14,648,535; long-term notes receivable 5,964,566; accumulated equity increase 660,780; total 21,273,881. Share of net income of Enova Energy Corporation for the period 579,255; dividends received 302,325. The notes bear interest at 3.23%. "the Township holds 4.49% of the common shares".
Statement of Financial Position: "Investment in Enova Energy Corporation / Kitchener Power Corp. (note 6)" 21,273,881 against cash of 17,858,505; total financial assets 45,445,936.
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