Wilmot budget to be drafted by outside firm

Lee Griffi, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Wilmot Township’s 2026 draft budget will not be produced by staff, but instead by one of the world’s largest professional services firms.

Mayor Natasha Salonen has used her Strong Mayor Powers to hire KPMG to lead the development of the budget as well as a long-term financial plan.

“There have been some internal changes in the finance department, and with Strong Mayor Powers, the budget is my responsibility to present regardless of people’s thoughts on the legislation. Talking with our CAO and corporate leadership team about putting a good budget together we are confident in, we came up with a big-four firm to come in.”

The big four also includes Ernst and Young, PricewaterhouseCoopers and Deloitte. KPMG is one of the world’s largest professional services firms, specializing in audit and assurance, tax services and advisory and consulting in management, financial and digital services.

“We are looking to them to bring credibility back to our budget. During this term of council, we have had a different treasurer and a different budget process every single year. (We’re) trying to get stability and a clear understanding of our budget, implementing best practices where perhaps we have fallen behind and being able to give the public, council and our staff assurance as we move forward.”

Salonen said council, staff and residents have been calling for a long-term financial plan, something KPMG will be able to provide.

“They’ll be preparing a financial strategy for us, something future staff and councils can implement as needed.”

The mayor won’t say definitively if the township will continue to outsource the budget in the future, but she is committed to hiring top financial staff as soon as possible.

“I am not going to say definitively one way or the other, but we are hiring a new director of corporate services and treasurer, and we are also looking to hire a new deputy treasurer.”

The township’s financial woes are well known and have been subject to intense scrutiny from the public. Salonen said people’s frustrations are justified

“It’s a valid feeling and valid concern. In my opinion and experience, the best way to rebuild credibility is to get the right people in those places. A team of financial professionals who are third-party coming in to help us is the right thing, and I stand firm behind that decision.”

The move will not cost taxpayers any additional money as it will be fully funded through organizational savings achieved from internal vacancies, making it net neutral to the township’s operating budget. The agreement with KPMG is worth $130,000. Salonen added, despite the budget being the township’s first under provincial Strong Mayor Powers, there will be opportunities for the public and council to provide input.

“Before we hired KPMG, I had directed staff to directly engage with councillors for pre-budget consultations. Each councillor was given the opportunity to meet one-on-one with myself and finance staff to share input both on their perspective and the perspective of their constituents.”

A community input meeting is scheduled for Nov. 10 in council chambers at 7 p.m. The budget is expected to be completed by early December, with the long-term financial plan finalized early in 2026.

Coun. Steven Martin said he supports the decision and is pleased the taxpayer won’t be on the hook for farming out the budget.

“KPMG is a leading national accounting firm with a lot of experience in working with municipalities. Since we have had turnover in the finance department, acquiring their services seems like a financially sound move in order to help us with our 2026 budget. It also ensures that we have a trusted, third-party oversight to help us with our process of creating a sound budget, building reserves and ensuring that we are using sound accounting management practices,” Martin said.

He added council will have its say once the document is tabled.

“The final budget still needs to be approved by council, so we will still be involved and the community will be given the opportunity for input. Coun. (Lillianne) Dunstall and I have already gone to the community for input a month ago.”

Dunstall said it is unfortunate most of council learned of the decision only a couple of days before the public announcement, by email.

“We received no explanation of how the decision evolved, what factors were weighed, or any specifics beyond what later appeared in the media release. I do not necessarily disagree with the outcome. Given the situation in our finance department, it may be the right call. The issue is that council was not privy to the discussions, the justifications, or the basis for selecting the firm. That lack of process and information undermines trust and makes it difficult to answer residents’ questions.”

The Gazette reached out to each member of Wilmot Township council for their thoughts on the budget situation but only received replies from Martin and Dunstall.