By Tyler Marr

Mayor worries base tax could ‘divide our community’

Sep 9, 2017 | 10:44 AM

A new measure aimed to redistribute the tax burden received mixed reactions from city council.

Council was presented with an option to implement a new property tax tool known as a base tax for the 2018 season. Implementing a base tax would not increase the taxation level, rather it would re-distribute the burden.

Mayor Greg Dionne was was pointed in his response, saying it would create an uneven playing field.

“What will a base tax do. A base tax will shift the tax burden from the hill to the flats,” he said. “That is what it is going to do. It is going to divide our community. The hill will see the benefits and the flats will pay the price.”

For example, a residential property assessed at $204,800 with a base tax of $25 would actually see taxes drop from $2859.49 to $2857.53. However, a property with an assessment under around $100,000 would see its property tax increase slightly.

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As well, for properties whose base tax plus municipal levy do not equate to the city’s minimum tax of $376, that amount would be applied before other levies for things like libraries and facilities are added on. There are around 300 properties not paying this minimum amount and around 25 per cent of properties pay less than $1,000 in general taxation. This is particularly problematic since the cost per property for police and fire alone is near $1,800 per year. Nearly 10 per cent of commercial property tax bills are lower than this amount.

A number of communities in Saskatchewan, like Saskatoon and Regina, don’t use a base tax, whereas municipalities like Humboldt and Melfort do.

Coun. Blake Edwards’ curiosity was peaked by a tax base, as he believes the current system punishes people for renovating their homes. A base tax would eliminate many problems experienced during reassessment years.

Coun. Don Cody said tinkering with the base tax was a slippery slope. Rather, Cody would like to perhaps see a slight manipulation to the minimum tax amount as he believes $376 “isn’t cutting it.”

“I pay lots of taxes and I would get a break, but do I deserve a break? I don’t think I deserve any more break than anyone else,” Cody said. “I think we could look at the minimum to a small degree but I wouldn’t tinker very much with the base…unless you have something specific you want to do with that money.”

The proposal was carried and will come before them again during their 2018 budget meetings later this year for consideration.

tyler.marr@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @JournoMarr