Vernon City Council reviewing the 2026 Budget at a special meeting Monday, Dec. 1 (photo by Liam Verster / Vernon Matters)

By Liam Verster

Budget 2026

Vernon Council endorses tax rate of 9.73 per cent in 2026, includes additional spending

Dec 1, 2025 | 11:15 AM

Vernon has set its tax rate for 2026 at 9.73 per cent, a figure the mayor concedes is “…a very large number for people having to pay it.”

The rate was originally projected to be 10.24 per cent, but that was brought down to 9.61 per cent after accounting for a one per cent decline linked to non-market change identified in a B.C. Assessment Preview Report, but then adding 0.37 per cent for contract obligations.

The rate of 9.61 per cent had already accounted for 2.88 per cent to maintain operation levels, 2.15 per cent to offset investment declines, 1.35 per cent for RCMP contracts, 0.36 per cent for previously approved projects, and 3.5 per cent for the Active Living Centre debt repayments.

Vernon City Council was presented with the budget at a special meeting Monday, Dec. 1, where a few additional items were added that brought the tax rate up to 9.73 per cent.

Those involved a 0.07 per cent increase for a safety line to Kelowna dispatch, a 0.03 per cent increase for firefighter medical screenings, and a 0.02 per cent increase to the DND washroom service levels.

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Council decided against supporting a 0.96 per cent infrastructure levy, and also voted against a 0.85 per cent hike linked to additional parks operating and maintenance at Monday’s meeting.

Though the overall rate was kept below 10 per cent, Mayor Victor Cumming said council wished they could have had it even lower.

“[The rate] is not one we’re excited about, let’s be absolutely clear, a couple things happened that are definitely outside our control,” Cumming told Vernon Matters following the special meeting.

“I really want to thank staff for bringing an operations budget of 2.88, which is what the public would expect, under three per cent. Our staffing union contracts are around three per cent, so to be underneath that is tremendous work by staff.

“The things that changed it were our investment income was down by 2.19 [per cent], and that means that has to go into the plus. Without that we’d be at [a tax rate of] 7.5, which I think is a very reasonable number, because 3.5 of that is for financing the Active Living Centre. We made that decision in 2022 based on a referendum. So if you took 3.5 off of 7.5, it would be at four per cent. That’s the real number, four per cent, 2.88 of operations and 1.12 of other items, and that’s preset contracts with RCMP and a number of other things that were preset.

“I know it’s a big number, I know 9.73 is a very large number for people having to pay it, but we knew this going in, minus the 2.12 that was a drop in our investment revenue.”

The Mayor did state that, with all those factors taken into account, it did appear to be a “very conservative budget,” and recommended people review it for themselves.

The previous tax rates had the average annual property tax increasing by $209.64 at the low end and $223.32 at the high end, so the new rate should see that actual number fall somewhere between those two. Full details about the impact the rate will have on residential taxes will be released early in the spring of 2026.

Council also agreed to spend some additional money on projects, services, and public safety, though without causing a tax increase.

The city agreed to use provincial funds remaining in the COVID-19 reserve to build a new website for the municipality; use the infrastructure reserve to hire a Communication and Engagement Advisory; using the sewer and water reserves to hire a Traffic Control Coordinator; and spending money from the RCMP contingency to hire a part-time exhibit custodian and two new RCMP members.

Council voted in favour of receiving the budget and the tax rate Monday, Dec. 1. It will be brought forward for adoption at a later date.