What an NCAA rule change might mean for junior hockey in Sask.
11h ago
Previously, WHL players were declared ineligible to play NCAA hockey in the U.S.
- Deficit: From a forecasted surplus of $106 million there is now a deficit of $434 million. That number will grow even further when the Crown numbers are included which won’t happen until later this month or into July.
- Scrapping Active Families Benefit: As promised in the election campaign there are no tax hikes including a decision not to increase sin taxes. The province is following a decision by the federal government to scrap the active families’ tax benefit, which gave families a break on sports and recreation activities. This should save the government $5.5 million.
- Prescription Drug Costs for Kids and Seniors: To cut spending with the intention of working to pay off the deficit, the government is making some tough decisions including making you pay $5 more for children and seniors’ prescription drug costs. The cap will rise from $20 to $25. That impacts roughly 66,600 families costing them $20 per year and 120,000 seniors costing them on average $80 per year. The cost of the drug plan has grown by an average of $10 million annually since 2012-13. The higher cap is intended to offset the cost of the annual increase by about $6.75 million.
- Municipal Parks: The government will no longer fund five of seven urban municipal parks, Battlefords River Valley and Chinook Parkway in Swift Current are included. This cut will save $540,000 per year. Wascana Park and Meewasin Trail will form part of the discussion on transformational change.
- Spending More: Even though the government insists it will be in a surplus situation of $6 million by 2017-18 fiscal year this budget it is spending more than it is taking in. Revenues are forecast at $14.02 billion with expenditures of $14.46 billion.
- Health Spending: Health gets the biggest percentage of dollars with a record $5.17 billion which includes a $20 million boost to reduce surgical wait times.
- Education Spending: Education gets $2.2 billion, which includes spending for new joint-use schools, building repair and maintenance and previously-announced new child-care spaces.
- Resource Revenue: Falling oil and potash prices year over year have cost the treasury $968 million. In this budget, WTI oil prices are forecast at $44.88 with the loonie at $0.75.
- Capital Spending: A record $1.7 billion is being spent on capital projects, the largest single-year capital spend in Saskatchewan history. The money will go to pay for schools, healthcare facilities, highways and municipal infrastructure. The government is borrowing an estimated $1 billion which will go in part toward some of this capital spending. Total public debt increases to $14.8 billion in 2016-17.
- Transformational Change: Transformational change is the buzzword of the budget as the government looks to deliver public service in a more cost-effective and efficient way. The Ministry of Health is appointing a commissioner to look into reducing the number of health regions in the province and a five-minister committee is being set-up to begin the discussion on what else that transformational change could deliver.