CFIB urges city to reduce commercial property taxes
After a report in December outlined how Prince Albert is home to the greatest disparity between residential and commercial tax rates, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) is urging haste on the city to address the issue.
On average, across the province, commercial owners pay 2.21 times what residential owners pay in tax. Locally, business owners are on the hook for 3.86 times the tab of residents, before education taxes are factored in, according to a report from the CFIB.
Understanding tax reform does not occur overnight, Jennifer Henshaw, an analysis with CFIB for the Prairie region, pitched the city on a three to five-year plan to gradually lower commercial tax rates for small businesses.
“It is unfair to overburden entrepreneurs with disproportionally high property taxes,” she told council members. “They are trying to create jobs with one hand tied behind their back.”