Sources and method

Where this comes from

Everything on these pages comes from public documents. Here they are, with how we used them, so anyone can check our work.

Documents

1. Ontario Financial Information Return (FIR)

   Ontario Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing · retrieved 2026-10-01

   The numbers behind the money and compare pages: 2019 to 2025 for Windsor, and 2025 for 3 similar places. Figures are what the municipality reported to the Province for each year, prepared on the same basis as its audited financial statements.

2. City of Windsor, council remuneration and expense statements

   City of Windsor · retrieved 2026-10-03

   What each council member was paid, and spent on benefits and expenses, 2025 to 2025. One statement a year; the link is the latest, and the council page links each year.

3. City of Windsor, budget documents

   City of Windsor · retrieved 2026-10-01

   The city’s published budgets. Used to check its plans against what it reported.

4. City Council agendas, minutes and video (Open Data catalogue)

   City of Windsor · retrieved 2026-10-03

   Meeting list for 2022 to 2026 with agendas, minutes and video links.

5. 2025 Annual Financial Report

   City of Windsor · retrieved 2026-10-03

   Audited consolidated statements; KPMG LLP report dated July 27, 2026; clean opinion.

6. 2026 Approved Operating Budget

   City of Windsor · retrieved 2026-10-03

   Approved 2026 operating budget, by account.

7. 2026 Proposed Operating Budget Amendments (Revised)

   City of Windsor · retrieved 2026-10-03

   The budget issues behind the 0% levy, including the one-time dividends.

8. 2026 Budget Presentation (January 26, 2026)

   City of Windsor · retrieved 2026-10-03

   Slides shown to Council when the 2026 budget was tabled.

9. 2025 Year-End Operating Budget Variance Report (C 37/2026)

   City of Windsor · retrieved 2026-10-03

   Year-end results by department and the reserve transfers.

10. Council agenda with reports, April 13, 2026

    City of Windsor · retrieved 2026-10-03

    Includes the Transit Windsor year-end report, the investment report and the 2025 council pay statement.

11. Council agenda with reports, June 29, 2026

    City of Windsor · retrieved 2026-10-03

    Includes the second quarter variance report, the Integrity Commissioner services update and the capital variance report.

12. Council agenda with reports, March 30, 2026

    City of Windsor · retrieved 2026-10-03

    Includes the Sandwich South financing strategy (C 26/2026).

13. Council agenda with reports, October 20, 2025

    City of Windsor · retrieved 2026-10-03

    Includes By-law 172-2025 on the Auditor General.

14. Consolidated Council agenda, April 27, 2026

    City of Windsor · retrieved 2026-10-03

    Includes By-law 72-2026 and Report C 52/2026 on the Auditor General.

15. Auditor General reports page

    City of Windsor · retrieved 2026-10-03

    All Auditor General investigation reports, work plans and status reports.

16. Auditor General Q2 status report and required communication

    Auditor General · retrieved 2026-10-03

    Status of work and the effect of the 2026 Council direction.

17. Mayoral decisions under the Municipal Act

    City of Windsor · retrieved 2026-10-03

    List of the Mayor’s written decisions under the special mayoral powers.

18. Statistics Canada, Consumer Price Index, annual average (table 18-10-0005-01)

    Statistics Canada · retrieved 2026-10-01

    How much prices went up each year, so cost growth can be compared with inflation.

How the numbers are worked out

Day-to-day spending

Total expenses as reported, minus amortization ("wear and tear"), which is an accounting cost rather than cash spent that year. Costs are shown in the service where they were recorded, before the city spreads its office overhead across services, so the cost of running the office stays visible.

Per home

An amount divided by the number of households the city reported to the Province for that year.

Similar places

Ontario single-tier municipalities with 60% to 160% of this population that had filed their 2025 return, in 2025. This gives 3 places. "Typical" means the median: half of similar places are above it and half below. The size limits are a judgement call; moving them a little adds or drops a few places, so treat small differences in rank as noise. Per-home figures use the household counts each city reports to the Province. Places do not all count the same way: some include seasonal homes, so per-home comparisons are a guide, not exact.

Faster than prices

Growth is compared with Canada's Consumer Price Index over the same years.

When a question is raised automatically

When a cost grew at least 25 percentage points faster than prices and faster than 80% of similar places; when a measure of money health is worse than 80% of similar places; or when a one-year tax increase is higher than 80% of similar places and well above inflation. "Needs an answer" means worse than 90% of similar places. When there are fewer than 20 similar places, automatic questions go no higher than "Worth asking", because one rank moves a lot in a small group.

What this cannot see

These records show totals by category, not individual payments. They cannot show whether a particular contract was fair, whether a purchase was split to avoid tendering, or who was paid. That needs the city's list of payments (its cheque register or accounts payable list), which residents can ask for under Ontario's freedom-of-information law (MFIPPA). That is the next thing we plan to add.