Financial sustainability is a municipality's ability to meet current and future service and infrastructure obligations without excessive tax increases, unsustainable debt levels, or deteriorating asset conditions that burden future generations. Sustainable finances mean current services are funded without drawing down reserves inappropriately, infrastructure is maintained and renewed on schedule, debt is manageable within provincial limits, and reserves are adequate for contingencies and planned purposes. Threats to sustainability include the infrastructure deficit (deferred maintenance creating future crises), downloading of responsibilities without revenue, economic dependence on single industries, and demographic shifts affecting both service demands and tax bases. Achieving sustainability requires long-term planning, appropriate revenue tools, disciplined spending, and honest accounting that doesn't defer costs to the future. Sustainability assessment considers financial indicators alongside broader community and environmental factors.