A 7.1% Tax Hike – and They Want a Medal?

City Hall just announced a 7.21% property tax increase, down from the 10.76% they originally projected, and they’re congratulating themselves for it.

They didn’t trim the top-heavy administrative layer.

They didn’t reduce exempt staff or eliminate duplicate roles.

They didn’t cut “dead weight.”

Instead, City Hall cut front-line services.

They paused fire department expansion and stalled increases to our police force—the very people who are there to serve and protect.

Meanwhile, Thompson Rivers University has already done the hard work, cutting administrative and management fat to protect its core services.

Why is the City of Kamloops not even looking in that direction?

So yes, 7.1% is lower than 10.76%. But residents are still paying more, while services are getting less.

That’s not efficiency. It’s protecting bureaucracy and passing the bill on to the public.

If City Hall wants credit, it should start where real savings live—at the top, not the front line.