The Greater Saskatoon Chamber of Commerce is urging City Councillors to consider the impact of year-over-year property tax and utility rate increases on Saskatoon’s population, businesses and tax base into the future.

“We’ve come to normalize above-average property tax increases as if they were a given,” says Jason Aebig, CEO of the Saskatoon Chamber. “Saskatoon risks becoming less and less affordable for people to live here, and for job-creators to do business here, if we continue on this path of perpetual tax increases with no end in sight.”

Using the $66,859 municipal property tax bill for its office location as a baseline, the Chamber projected the building’s municipal taxes to 2030 based on the City’s cost breakdown and an average annual increase of 4.22%. At that rate, the building’s municipal tax bill would rise to $82,208 in just five years.

“This is unsustainable, particularly since it excludes reassessment increases, provincial education taxes, library taxes, potential levies and other surcharges,” observes Aebig. “If we don’t change course, these increases will outpace the capacity of the average business owner to pay them or pass them on to customers.”

According to the Chamber, controlling costs, incentivizing private sector growth and economic activity, and auditing City programs and services for savings and efficiencies, is the way forward.

“When Saskatoon’s job-creators invest, hire and expand, they attract new residents, get more people working, and generate new dollars to fund needs and priorities, from more police to greener parks,” says Aebig. “Commerce and quality of life go hand in hand. When our city’s employers do well, the well-being of our community gets better too.”

For guidance, Aebig is encouraging City Council to review the sensible ideas outlined in the Chamber’s “YXE Election Pledge” which the Mayor and most councillors endorsed during the 2024 civic election (www.yxepledge.ca). Proposals included expanding the function of a civic services auditor, improving outreach and service to business owners, guarding against scope creep into provincial jurisdiction, and prioritizing “needs” over “wants” to avoid excessive tax and rate increases.

The Chamber has also delivered “Budget Survival Kits” to Councillors to help them get through the tough budget deliberations ahead. Each kit contains products from Chamber member businesses – a lighthearted way to remind Council of the “people behind the products” who drive Saskatoon’s prosperity and growth.

“Ultimately, this isn’t just about numbers on a tax or utility bill. It’s about people — business owners making tough choices, residents facing tight household budgets, and community organizations trying to deliver more with less,” says Aebig. “We hope City Council will look at its budget through a sustainability lens, focused on what our employers and other ratepayers can afford.”

2026/27 Saskatoon Budget Pocket Guide