Rural municipalities in southeastern Saskatchewan are coping with removing this winter’s heavy snowfall, and so are their budgets.
Spokespersons for RMs in the Wawota, Fillmore and Rocanville areas said they aren’t worried about spending more than they allocated for snow removal.
“We budget X amount,” said Denis Lamontagne, reeve of Walpole municipality. “If it’s not used up, it’s set aside in reserves and draws interest.”
After three mild winters, Walpole’s snow removal budget is in good shape, he said.
In Rocanville, administrator Jane Laich said she hasn’t heard of RMs struggling with extra snow removal costs.
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Rural municipalities base their budget on the calendar year, she said, which means costs incurred since Jan. 1 will be paid from the 2001 budget. That allows some breathing room.
“You shouldn’t really run into trouble,” she said.
Rocanville removes snow with its own equipment. Two equipment operators are retained on stand-by throughout the winter to do the work.
In the Fillmore RM, the work is done by employees and by several snowplow clubs.
Administrator Karen Hall said the clubs submit their bills and receive a set rate from the RM. Those bills aren’t in yet so she doesn’t know how close to the budget the costs will be.
“We usually set aside enough money,” Hall said. “We’re going to be OK. Most RMs usually budget a lot, just in case.”
Lamontagne said one of the challenges his municipality faces is keeping a lot of roads open.
The oil industry is active in Walpole, and while that brings in extra revenue it also means more roads need to be cleared. RM employees are kept on a monthly wage through the winter anyway, but the extra costs this year will come in fuel and repairs.
