Accepted 9% increase required to maintain programs, including children\u2019s dental health service, Algoma Public Health maintains; board member Sally Hagman disagrees<\/p>\n
Published Nov 27, 2025 \u00a0\u2022\u00a0 Last updated 4\u00a0hours ago \u00a0\u2022\u00a0 4 minute read<\/p>\n
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Board of Health member Don McConnell said the proposed levy increase is reasonable, especially if it maintains the children\u2019s dental program. Brian Kelly\/The Sault StarArticle content<\/p>\n
Questions\u00a0over what boiled down to\u00a0dollars and cents \u2013 and the value of a children\u2019s dental program\u00a0\u2013\u00a0dominated discussions\u00a0over Algoma Public Health<\/a>\u2019s 2026 capital and operating budget.<\/p>\n Advertisement 2<\/p>\n This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n In the end, the Board of Health, APH\u2019s governing body, approved\u00a0the recommended\u00a0$18.5-million budget, a\u00a03.4 per cent increase from\u00a0that of\u00a0the previous year.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n Recommended Videos<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n The board heard Wednesday evening\u00a0\u00a0staff originally\u00a0 presented a budget report with a recommended 3.9 per\u00a0cent increase\u00a0over 2025 levels, driven by a 4.7 per cent jump in salary and benefits previously approved by the board, a 1.3 per cent \u00a0increase in operating costs, and the province\u2019s decision to limit its annual increase for its share of public health costs to\u00a0one\u00a0per cent.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was not fun,\u201d said board member and Finance and Audit Committee chair Jody\u00a0Wildman of the budget\u00a0preparation\u00a0process. He said the initially pitched 3.9 per cent increase \u201cdoesn\u2019t sound bad.\u201d<\/p>\n Advertisement 3<\/p>\n This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n \u201cBut when you take into context the fact that the\u00a0provincial\u00a0government has decided to limit its annual increase to\u00a0one per cent, there\u00a0is a\u00a0disproportionate\u00a0increase on the municipal level,\u201d Wildman said.<\/p>\n That increase would have seen the\u00a0municipal\u00a0portion\u00a0rise by 11 per cent in 2026.\u00a0The recommended budget,\u00a0almost unanimously\u00a0passed, translates\u00a0to a\u00a0nine\u00a0per cent increase to the municipal levy.<\/p>\n This figure did not sit well with board member Sally Hagman \u2013 she also serves as Blind River mayor \u2013 calling the prescribed levy\u00a0increase\u00a0\u201ctoo high.\u201d<\/p>\n Blind River<\/a> is trying to\u00a0maintain\u00a0its levy bump\u00a0at\u00a0between five and six per cent.<\/p>\n Hagman suggested trimming the\u00a0figure\u00a0to 8.5 per cent from nine per cent.<\/p>\n \u201cI know that\u00a0sounds\u00a0like\u00a0I\u2019m\u00a0splitting hairs, but when there are things coming off the table and I hear our\u00a0directors\u00a0pulling stings\u00a0at the other end to try to get things down at the\u00a0municipal\u00a0end \u2026\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Advertisement 4<\/p>\n This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n She applauded APH as being \u201cso good\u00a0about\u00a0watching your dollars.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBut it\u2019s really\u00a0important\u00a0for the people at the end of the\u00a0queue, which is the taxpayer, a lot of them on fixed income,\u00a0and they just can\u2019t handle anything more than six per cent,\u201d Hagman said.<\/p>\n