HRM property tax hike proposed
Nearly a year into the pandemic, one of the last things residents in Halifax Regional Municipality want to see is another bill, let alone an increase to their property tax bill.
But that may happen, with the municipality's financial staff recommending increasing the average tax bill for residential and commercial properties by 1.9 per cent for the 2021-2022 fiscal year.
That would be an increase of $38 for the average residential property tax bill and $817 for the average commercial property tax bill.
While Halifax regional council unanimously agreed to work with the suggested fiscal framework during a budget committee meeting Wednesday, don't break out the calculator just yet.
There's still a possibility people may see a smaller increase or no increase at all as numbers can change as budget talks continue over the coming months.
“I don't think we ever started off by adopting a general tax rate that has stayed the same all the way through our deliberations,” Mayor Mike Savage said.
“This is a chance for finance to go away and put something together they can come back to us with and say, ‘Based on that, this is where we are.'”
Last year, the proposed increase to the average residential tax bill in HRM was $30 or 1.5 per cent for the 20202021 fiscal year.
But then COVID-19 hit and turned everything upside down.
Many people lost their jobs or were forced to work from home, places went out of business and downtown Halifax turned into a ghost town.
Those factors, and many others caused by the pandemic, had councillors concerned about increasing the average tax bill.
“We have increased unemployment that is higher now in HRM than before the pandemic and that is thousands of people out of work and everybody out of work is struggling,” Coun. Waye Mason (Halifax South Downtown) said.
But Mason also acknowledged that nearly 70 per cent of the municipality's revenue comes from a combination of general tax rate, transit property and area rates.
Jane Fraser, chief financial officer of HRM, said the municipality is “in a sound financial position.”
But the recommendation to raise the average property tax bill was brought forward so the municipality can continue to offer services to its residents, while also dealing with compensation, which continues to be the municipality's largest cost driver.
“This is staff coming forward and saying given the services that are provided, given some of council's direction on various initiatives, the capital, all the different components … this is what we're recommending to start with,” Fraser said.
Coun. Shawn Cleary (Halifax West Armdale) suggested instead of increasing both the average tax bill for residential and commercial properties, keep the commercial average tax bill the same and increase the residential side by 3.3 per cent.
“In a pandemic when we are having so many things hurting, some people say can we just do it for small business?” Cleary said.
“We're not allowed to give money to private businesses under our charter, but this might be one way we can take less from them.”
However, many councillors said seeing the average tax bill for residential properties go above two per cent would harm too many residents, as well as the small business owners who also pay residential property taxes in HRM.
“I would like to see how we support small business, but not at the expense of residential,” Coun. Cathy Deagle Gammon (Waverley-fall River-musquodoboit Valley) said.
Coun. Becky Kent (Dartmouth South-eastern Passage) echoed the District 1 councillor's words.
“Without question, the small businesses and medium businesses are those that I don't want to see heavily burdened here,” Kent said.
“If shifting things around can allow us to hold the tax rate, then that to me is a better approach.”
Halifax regional council will continue budget talks at the next budget committee meeting Jan. 20.