By Chad Feehan
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
November 17, 2023 Edition
The City of Mount Pearl presented its 2022 audited financial statements at a council meeting Tuesday.
Undertaken by BDO Canada, an independent accounting firm, the audit compared the City’s revenues and operating expenses to that of the previous year.
Councillor Chelsea Lane said the City is in “strong financial shape,” and highlighted that while revenue was down, expenditures followed suit. That was enough to land the City in a surplus position.
“We continue to pay down debt, reducing our long-term debt by just over $2,000,000 in 2022,” Lane said. “We are also continually preparing for the future… The City prides itself on solid financial stewardship and planning for the future. We continue to balance down debt with spending on important infrastructure and recreation investment while looking at opportunities for revenue generation.”
The City’s net debt last year sat at $13,923,367, a significant drop from $18,058,888 in 2021. The City had budgeted its debt for 2022 to be $23,143,512.
Revenues last year were recorded at $49,932,372, down from $53,514,546 in 2021. This was counterbalanced by a drop in expenses from $53,357,952 to $51,266,900 year over year.
Financial assets including cash, cash equivalents, and money owed to the City stood at $31,522,063, which was up over a million dollars from the previous year.
Mayor Dave Aker was pleased at the City’s financial standing in light of what the City faced in 2021 and 2022.
“We went through a rough couple of years; COVID related and other disruptions,” he said. “We’ve come out of that with a very low net debt amount.”
Pre-pandemic in 2019, the City’s debt was $20,148,153, and its total financial assets totaled $31,998,107.
