FORT ST. JOHN -- The city released a report detailing Fort St. John's financial health and performance against 12 other similar-sized municipalities in B.C.

They say they have experienced modest population growth over the past ten years. Population has grown by 1.32 per cent per year or an additional 269 residents per year.

As of December 31st, 2022, Fort St. John had a debt of $34,097,151. The new RCMP building will also add a debt of approximately $17 million. The only debt that affected the tax rate was for the Pomeroy Sports Centre, which was $9,829,917 of the current total. The remaining debt is recoverable through utility rates and Local Area Service debt payments.

Due to the Peace River Agreement, revenue from the Peace Region has led to the ability to repair roads, build the new RCMP building, upgrade the downtown core and upgrade infrastructure that is at the end of its life. Fort St. John received $30.5 million of grant revenue representing 34.4% of total revenue. It is four times more than the municipality in 2nd place and about eight times more than the average.

Liquidity measures whether a municipality is maintaining enough cash on hand to pay its bills. Fort St. John can pay about three times more than its current liabilities if there is a financial or other emergency, more than the average municipality.

According to the report, Fort St. John has also increased its capital assets and short-term capital projects.