FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 9, 2004

HARDEMAN CALLS FOR MUNICIPAL INPUT ON TAXATION ISSUES

WOODSTOCK – “With the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC) under continuous attack by Ontario municipalities, it’s time for municipal associations to review property assessment policies and present their recommendations on how the system should work,” said Ernie Hardeman, MPP Oxford.

“I believe the Association of Municipalities (AMO) and the Rural Ontario Municipalities Association (ROMA) should establish committees to review the property assessment process and decide how the system can best work for them,” said Hardeman.

“It would also be a good time for municipalities to discuss tax policies as they relate to the different categories of tax rates within their communities,” he said.

“Should the capping of business and industry tax rates be scrapped? Should more categories be added? Should municipalities have more flexibility in setting the tax rate for certain classifications? These are all issues municipalities should discuss and make their views known.”

Complaints about the current market value assessment program have been unrelenting in the past few years and in many cases, municipal leaders have been the most vociferous critics.

“People forget MPAC is a non-profit corporation that is controlled by a board where municipal leaders have the majority of members,” said Hardeman.

Many constituency offices across Ontario have been deluged by calls from constituents concerned about the assessment of recreational vehicles in campgrounds. Oxford is no exception.

The decision to assess these trailers resulted from a court decision made in response to a petition from a municipality questioning why these “semi-permanent, summer dwellings” were excluded from property assessment rolls. The Minister of Finance has implemented a regulation making the court order effective for 2003.

“I disagree with the Minister’s decision to put campground owners in the difficult position of collecting payments from owners of mobile homes and trailers who may or may not still reside in their campgrounds. Retroactive taxation for the completed 2003 camping season is just not acceptable.”

Hardeman said that municipalities should play a role in determining how their properties are assessed and how tax rates are applied to these properties.

In addition, changes in classification for agricultural producers of value added products must also be addressed by municipalities. For example, farmers producing maple syrup for sale at the sugarbush or farm gate can face property tax reclassifications from farm to a commercial class.

Hardeman said he believes it’s time for municipalities to take their criticisms to the next level and recommend reforms they feel will make property assessment more effective to their needs, and more acceptable to their constituents. This can be done effectively through AMO and ROMA.

-30-