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N.B. government to set property taxes for municipalities in effort to lower bills
The bill would automatically lower rates when assessments rise and let councils override the cut only with a public vote, officials said.
- On Wednesday, the Holt government tabled legislation to automatically lower municipal property tax rates when assessments rise faster than inflation, ending the practice of municipalities treating rising property values as "revenue windfalls" across New Brunswick.
- Rising property values currently allow municipalities to automatically boost tax revenues unless councils intervene; Local Government Minister Aaron Kennedy says this forces councils to justify future tax increases publicly.
- The bill increases the allowable gap between residential and commercial tax rates from more than 41 per cent to 50 per cent, providing municipalities flexibility to lower residential rates without matching commercial cuts.
- Saint John Mayor Donna Reardon expressed disappointment, stating the reforms fail to fully separate residential and industrial tax rates. "It's not what we wanted," Reardon said.
- Some Young families in new homes remain excluded from provincial assessment protections, forcing them to pay up to 30 per cent more tax than neighbors—an issue Kennedy dismissed as affecting few.
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12 Articles
N.B. property tax changes target municipal revenue windfalls fuelled by soaring assessments
A complex new formula introduced for calculating property taxes in New Brunswick will loosen the connections between residential and non-residential tax rates in municipalities and automatically lower rates when local property assessments rise.
·Canada
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The Toronto Star+6 Reposted by 6 other sources
N.B. government to set property taxes for municipalities in effort to lower bills
FREDERICTON - The New Brunswick government says it plans to tell each municipality across the province how much it should raise property taxes every year as it tries to address
·Toronto, Canada
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The Holt government will change the calculation of property taxes and want to ensure that New Brunswickers' bills are no longer inflated by increases in property values, while municipalities will have more room for manoeuvre to set their tax rates.
Coverage Details
Total News Sources12
Leaning Left7Leaning Right0Center2Last UpdatedBias Distribution78% Left
Bias Distribution
- 78% of the sources lean Left
78% Left
L 78%
C 22%
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