{
  "geography": "City of Victoria (municipality)",
  "scope": "city",
  "levels": [
    "Municipal (City budget)"
  ],
  "period": "December 31, 2025",
  "period_start": "2025-12-31",
  "period_end": "2025-12-31",
  "trend": "context",
  "direction_good": "down",
  "refresh_frequency": "Annually (audited report published mid-year)",
  "id": "city-reserves",
  "category": "City finances",
  "title": "City reserve funds",
  "plain_question": "How much money does the City hold in reserve funds at year end, for future repairs, equipment and unexpected costs?",
  "value": 316456000,
  "display_value": "$316.5M",
  "unit": "at December 31",
  "comparison": {
    "previous_period": "2024",
    "previous_value": 297130000,
    "change_percent": 6.5
  },
  "since_text": "Was $297.1M in 2024 and $289.9M in 2021. Per resident: $3,046",
  "trend_basis": "Reserves and operating surplus of $316.5 million at December 31, 2025, compared with $297.1 million a year earlier (+6.5%).",
  "right_direction": "Shown for context, without a “better” or “worse” label.",
  "caveats": [
    "Total of the City's reserve funds and operating surplus, less the unfunded employee benefit liability, as printed in the Annual Report.",
    "Most reserves are set aside for specific purposes, such as equipment and infrastructure, and are not free to spend."
  ],
  "charts": [
    {
      "title": "Reserve funds at year end",
      "fmt": "money",
      "unit": "",
      "lines": [
        {
          "name": "Reserves",
          "area": "city",
          "series": [
            {
              "period": "2021",
              "value": 289949000
            },
            {
              "period": "2022",
              "value": 318351000
            },
            {
              "period": "2023",
              "value": 305009000
            },
            {
              "period": "2024",
              "value": 297130000
            },
            {
              "period": "2025",
              "value": 316456000
            }
          ]
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "series": [
    {
      "period": "2021",
      "value": 289949000
    },
    {
      "period": "2022",
      "value": 318351000
    },
    {
      "period": "2023",
      "value": 305009000
    },
    {
      "period": "2024",
      "value": 297130000
    },
    {
      "period": "2025",
      "value": 316456000
    }
  ],
  "source": {
    "name": "City of Victoria, Annual Report (Statistics section)",
    "url": "https://www.victoria.ca/media/file/annual-report-2025",
    "dataset_url": "https://www.victoria.ca/city-government/corporate-strategic-plan/annual-report",
    "download_url": "https://www.victoria.ca/media/file/annual-report-2025",
    "publisher_page": "https://www.victoria.ca/city-government/corporate-strategic-plan/annual-report",
    "page_url": "https://www.victoria.ca/media/file/annual-report-2025#page=83",
    "page": 83,
    "locator": "City of Victoria Annual Report 2025, page 83, reserve funds “Total” row",
    "reads": "Reserve funds, Total (in thousands): 2025 $316,456"
  },
  "licence": {
    "name": "Public data, not under an open licence. Used with attribution.",
    "url": "https://www.victoria.ca/legal-disclaimer",
    "open": false
  },
  "verified_text": [
    "Reserve funds total (in thousands): Total $ 289,949 $ 318,351 $ 305,009 $ 297,130 $ 316,456"
  ],
  "data_published": "2026-07-17",
  "retrieved_at": "2026-11-12T04:45:53Z",
  "attribution": "Source: City of Victoria, Annual Report (Statistics section). Public document, used with attribution; not endorsed by the publisher.",
  "licence_type": "public",
  "source_tier": 1,
  "measure_kind": "input",
  "better_measure": null,
  "status_rule": {
    "rule": "One rule for every measure: a change smaller than 5% of the earlier value, or smaller than the agency's own margin of error, is “About the same”; no change is calculated across a marked break in a series; homelessness estimates, prices, staffing and comparison pages are shown for context without a label.",
    "reason": "Shown for context, without a better or worse label.",
    "threshold_percent": 5.0
  },
  "changes": {
    "year": null,
    "five_year": {
      "period": "2021",
      "years": 4,
      "value": 289949000,
      "comparable": true,
      "text": "vs 2021: +9.1%"
    }
  },
  "direction": {
    "type": "context",
    "rule": "Outcome measures read Better, Worse or About the same; published government targets read Ahead of, On or Behind target; value-judgement measures read Rising, Falling or Steady in a neutral colour. A change smaller than the agency's own margin of error, or otherwise smaller than 5% of the earlier value, is About the same (or Steady). No change is calculated across a marked break in a series.",
    "key": "rising",
    "label": "Rising",
    "arrow": "▲",
    "rel": 6.504223740450307,
    "delta": null,
    "vs": "2024",
    "cur": "2025",
    "why": "Reserves are savings for future costs; their right size is a policy choice. The change is 6.5% of the earlier value, at or above the 5% threshold.",
    "change": "6.5%",
    "one_year": "+6.5%",
    "five": {
      "period": "2021",
      "comparable": true,
      "rel": 9.141952550276084,
      "years": 4,
      "longest": true,
      "text": "+9.1%"
    }
  },
  "benchmark": {
    "rung": 4,
    "rung_name": "Comparison only",
    "as_of": "2026-11-12",
    "items": [
      {
        "kind": "note",
        "label": "Note",
        "text": "The City’s Reserve Funds policy (revised November 2023) says a minimum and a maximum balance shall be established for each reserve fund. Neither the policy nor the Reserve Fund Bylaw lists those balances or a target for total reserves (checked November 12, 2026). Who could set them: Victoria City Council.",
        "area": "City of Victoria",
        "source": {
          "title": "Reserve Funds policy (Department of Finance Policies and Procedures, revised November 2023)",
          "publisher": "City of Victoria",
          "date": "published in Council meeting materials, 2025",
          "url": "https://pub-victoria.escribemeetings.com/filestream.ashx?DocumentId=101109",
          "terms": "https://www.victoria.ca/legal-disclaimer",
          "refresh": "When Council revises the policy",
          "licence": "Public document, not under an open licence. Quoted with attribution.",
          "checked": "2026-11-12",
          "key": "reserve_policy"
        },
        "documents_checked": [
          {
            "title": "Reserve Funds policy (Department of Finance Policies and Procedures, revised November 2023)",
            "publisher": "City of Victoria",
            "date": "published in Council meeting materials, 2025",
            "url": "https://pub-victoria.escribemeetings.com/filestream.ashx?DocumentId=101109",
            "terms": "https://www.victoria.ca/legal-disclaimer",
            "refresh": "When Council revises the policy",
            "licence": "Public document, not under an open licence. Quoted with attribution.",
            "checked": "2026-11-12",
            "key": "reserve_policy"
          },
          {
            "title": "Reserve Fund Bylaw (No. 15-050, amended by No. 18-080)",
            "publisher": "City of Victoria",
            "date": "2015, amended 2018",
            "url": "https://www.victoria.ca/city-government/bylaw-services/reserve-fund-bylaw",
            "terms": "https://www.victoria.ca/legal-disclaimer",
            "refresh": "When Council amends the bylaw",
            "licence": "Public document, not under an open licence. Quoted with attribution.",
            "checked": "2026-11-12",
            "key": "reserve_bylaw"
          }
        ]
      }
    ],
    "drawn": [],
    "rule": "Highest rung found is shown; the site never sets a target. Methods, Targets."
  },
  "benchmarks": [],
  "highest_rung": null,
  "decided_by": [
    {
      "body": "COV",
      "name": "City of Victoria Council",
      "decides": "Adopts the financial plan by bylaw each year, then sets property tax rates by bylaw before May 15.",
      "laws": [
        {
          "key": "cc165",
          "label": "Community Charter, s. 165",
          "url": "https://www.bclaws.gov.bc.ca/civix/document/id/complete/statreg/03026_06#section165"
        },
        {
          "key": "cc197",
          "label": "Community Charter, s. 197",
          "url": "https://www.bclaws.gov.bc.ca/civix/document/id/complete/statreg/03026_07#section197"
        }
      ],
      "last": {
        "text": "Five Year Financial Plan Bylaw, 2026 (No. 26-040) and 2026 tax rates adopted May 7, 2026",
        "label": "Five Year Financial Plan Bylaw, 2026 (No. 26-040) and 2026 tax rates adopted May 7, 2026",
        "url": "https://engage.victoria.ca/2026budget"
      },
      "next": {
        "text": "2027 financial plan, then tax rate bylaw before May 15, 2027",
        "label": "Community Charter, s. 197",
        "url": "https://www.bclaws.gov.bc.ca/civix/document/id/complete/statreg/03026_07#section197"
      }
    },
    {
      "body": "POL",
      "name": "Victoria and Esquimalt Police Board",
      "decides": "Prepares the police budget, which the councils approve as part of the City’s spending.",
      "laws": [
        {
          "key": "pa27",
          "label": "Police Act, s. 27",
          "url": "https://www.bclaws.gov.bc.ca/civix/document/id/complete/statreg/96367_01#section27"
        }
      ],
      "last": null,
      "next": {
        "text": "Provisional budget due to the councils by November 30, 2026 (Police Act, s. 27)",
        "label": "Police Act, s. 27",
        "url": "https://www.bclaws.gov.bc.ca/civix/document/id/complete/statreg/96367_01#section27"
      }
    }
  ],
  "main_decision_maker": "City of Victoria Council",
  "label_1y": {
    "key": "rising",
    "label": "Rising"
  },
  "label_long": {
    "key": "rising",
    "label": "Rising",
    "years": 4,
    "change": "+9.1%"
  },
  "target_line": {
    "form": 4,
    "text": "No target found",
    "target": null,
    "gap": null,
    "comparison": null,
    "applies_here": false,
    "note": null
  }
}