Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow officially launches the city’s 2026 budget on Monday, which includes a 2.2 per cent property tax hike.
The mayor’s budget was released on the city’s website on Sunday.
The final version maintains a 2.2 per cent residential tax increase, a hike that is in line with inflation and the lowest property tax increase of Chow’s administration.
It marks the lowest property tax increase since 2020. Last year, a 6.9 per cent property tax increase was levied, while two years ago, a 9.5 per cent increase was levied on Toronto residents.
Chow says the budget, which follows recommendations from the budget committee, is about affordability for Torontonians.
“A city is a promise we make to each other: if you work here, you should be able to afford to live here,” she states in an opening letter about the budget.
The budget affordability measures include freezing TTC fares for another year and introducing fare capping. It also includes previously announced investments, such as student nutrition programs and renter inspectors.
It also includes funding tor the Toronto Police Service, which will receive a $93-million budget increase that was requested to fund a multi-year hiring plan and to pay for a raise for officers.
The budget also includes a greater property tax break for small business owners, which will see them pay 20 per cent less than others in the commercial class. There’s also a boost to funding for the Downtown East Action Plan, which brings together organizations to address issues related to poverty, homelessness, drug use, mental health in the city’s core. These two measures include changes that were not included in the city’s initial budget.
City council will debate and ratify the budget on Feb. 10.
This is Chow’s last budget before the next municipal election in the fall.
