To save $164,800 in 2018, Red Deer city council voted to defer the census to 2019.
The decision was opposed by Councillors Michael Dawe and Frank Wong, who argued that the city might be rebounding from the improved economy.
Unless a municipal census is taken, showing a population gain, Red Deer might miss out on getting the full amount it’s entitled to in per-capita government grants, said Dawe.
But Mayor Tara Veer expressed the majority view, saying that it could easily go the other way too. She added it’s important to achieve any kind of cost-saving in this tight budget year. “There’s not a lot of room in this budget.”