CANADA - April 2017 SASKATCHEWAN - COUNCIL REMOVES AIRPORT TAX EXEMPTION ........................................................................ 2 SASKATCHEWAN - SASKATOON PROPERTY TAXES ARE GOING UP: HERE'S HOW AND WHY .................................. 2 ONTARIO - OTTAWA DISHED OUT $17 MILLION WORTH OF MUNICIPAL TAX BREAKS FOR VACANT COMMERCIAL PROPERTIES ........................................................................................................................................................... 3 ONTARIO BECOMES SECOND PROVINCE IN CANADA TO IMPOSE EXTRA TAX ON FOREIGN BUYERS ...................... 4 SERVICE NEW BRUNSWICK RELEASES UPDATE ON PROPERTY TAX REVIEWS, CORRECTIONS MADE ...................... 5 BRITISH COLUMBIA - COUNCILLORS HOLD THE LINE ON 2017 TAX RATES .............................................................. 6 ALBERTA - EDMONTON COUNCIL SETS FINAL PROPERTY TAX RATE FOR 2017 ....................................................... 6 ALBERTA - FORT MCMURRAY RESIDENTS WORRY ABOUT PROPERTY TAX HIKES AS PROVINCE LOOKS TO BALANCE OUT TAX RATES ...................................................................................................................................... 7 ONTARIO - FIVE THINGS: COMPARING ONTARIO'S AND B.C.'S 15 PER CENT NON-RESIDENT REAL ESTATE TAX ..... 8 BRITISH COLUMBIA - VICTORIA COUNCIL ASKS B.C. FOR FOREIGN SPECULATORS TAX .......................................... 9 ONTARIO HOPES TAX ON NON-CANADIANS BUYING TORONTO HOMES WILL TEMPER PRICES ........................... 10 ONTARIO TO TAX NON-RESIDENT FOREIGN HOUSING BUYERS 15% .................................................................... 11 ONTARIO - WILL A NEW FOREIGN PROPERTY BUYER'S TAX COOL TORONTO'S HOUSING MARKET? .................... 13 BRITISH COLUMBIA - QUESTIONS OVER FAIRNESS AND MERITS OF VANCOUVER EMPTY HOMES TAX ................ 13 BRITISH COLUMBIA ASSESSMENTS SHAKE UP PROPERTY TAXES ......................................................................... 15 ONTARIO CONSIDERS HOUSING TAX FOR NON-RESIDENT SPECULATORS ............................................................ 16 NEW BRUNSWICK - EX-JUDGE'S DETAILED MISSION FOR PROPERTY ASSESSMENT REVIEW REMAINS GUARDED 17 ALBERTA - CITY COUNCIL APPROVES 2017 PROPERTY TAX REDUCTION ............................................................... 18 ONTARIO - WHAT CAN GOVERNMENTS DO TO COOL TORONTO’S HOUSING MARKET? ...................................... 19 NEW BRUNSWICK - OPPOSITION CALLS FOR N.B. PREMIER TO RESIGN AMID PROPERTY TAX SCANDAL ............. 20 N.B. PREMIER’S OFFICE TO BLAME FOR INFLATED PROPERTY ASSESSMENTS, NOT ASSESSORS: UNION .............. 20 BRITISH COLUMBIA – FLOATING GARDEN TAX FIGHT CONTINUES ....................................................................... 21 NEW BRUNSWICK - 'THERE'S MISTAKES ALL OVER THE PLACE': NEW AERIAL ASSESSMENT SYSTEM PROVING TO BE UNRELIABLE .................................................................................................................................................... 22 NEW BRUNSWICK - 'I SINCERELY APOLOGIZE TO ALL NEW BRUNSWICKERS' ....................................................... 24 NEW BRUNSWICK - PROVINCE TO ALLOW NBERS TO PAY WHAT THEY WANT FOR PROPERTY TAX ..................... 26 ONTARIO - CITY TO PAY BACK 'SIGNIFICANT' AMOUNT OF PROPERTY TAXES TO BIG BOX STORES ...................... 27 NEW BRUNSWICK PREMIER SAYS PROPERTY TAX SCANDAL WILL BE INVESTIGATED ........................................... 28 International Property Tax Institute IPTI Xtracts- The items included in IPTI Xtracts have been extracted from published information. IPTI accepts no responsibility for the accuracy of the information or any opinions expressed in the articles. P a g e | 2 TORONTO EYES VACANCY TAX TO REIN IN REAL ESTATE SPECULATION ............................................................... 28 ________________________________________________________________________________________________________ SASKATCHEWAN - Council removes airport tax exemption The Regina Airport Authority (RAA) will have to find ways to make up its own funding shortfall after city council finalized a plan to remove a property tax exemption on airport lands. Council approved the decision at its regular meeting Monday night. It's a move the RAA believes will shortchange it around $300,000. Airport CEO Dick Graham had previously appeared before council and explained how various fees could increase as a result of having to pay the taxes. The authority argued it provides nearly all municipal services on airport lands, with "very little service being provided by the City of Regina", indicated in a report previously submitted by the RAA to city council. But Mayor Michael Fougere countered and said the airport's roads, water, wastewater and garbage collection all connect and move into a larger city system. He said he believes the airport needs to pay its share. "We do provide services, not in the same way that we do for residential or businesses, but we do provide those services and they should pay for them too," said Fougere on the CJME Morning Show Tuesday. The city resorted to the decision after suddenly having to find $10.3 million in its own budget after decisions in the provincial budget left the financial gap SASKATCHEWAN - Saskatoon property taxes are going up: Here's how and why CBC News breaks down the changes to your tax bill Homeowners in Saskatoon will be paying more property tax in 2017. Everyone in Saskatoon will pay an extra 4.18 per cent on their taxes. For the average Saskatoon home worth $371,000, the tax bill will be $3,145 — $126 more than 2016. Average Tax Bill 2017 But it's not just the city that decides your tax bill. The provincial budget had a huge impact on property taxes this year. Now that the dust has settled, CBC News breaks down what the average tax bill in Saskatoon will look like. City portion Homeowners in Saskatoon will see a 2.55 per cent tax hike on the city portion of their tax bills next month. That translates to a $39 year-over-year jump for a home worth $371,000. How we got here In an effort to deal with an unexpected $9-million shortfall caused by the provincial budget, city councillors voted to hike taxes by an additional 0.95 percentage points. On top of an unexpected hike in the PST, the province scrapped its grants-in-lieu program, which saw payments made to municipalities in place of property taxes for SaskPower and SaskEnergy. International Property Tax Institute IPTI Xtracts- The items included in IPTI Xtracts have been extracted from published information. IPTI accepts no responsibility for the accuracy of the information or any opinions expressed in the articles. P a g e | 3 Because of a change in provincial tax policy and new shift between the business and residential rate, taxes for homeowners are going up 2.55 per cent. Education portion The provincial budget not only put the squeeze on cities, it also upped education property taxes. Average homeowners in Saskatoon will be paying an additional $79 in 2017 compared with last year. How we got here It's interesting math. The province actually lowered the education tax rate in 2017, but the government raised education portion of property tax by 10 per cent across the province. In total, that meant people were paying more in educational property tax and it's expected to put $67 million more in provincial coffers this year. Library portion The smallest portion of the overall tax hike will go to Saskatoon's public libraries. Overall, homeowners will pay $8 a year more for libraries 2017. How we got here Library funding is in flux after the provincial government initially cut, then backtracked on, provincial library funding. It's still unclear what will happen, but homeowners in Saskatoon will still see a 7.21 per cent hike in 2017. ONTARIO - Ottawa dished out $17 million worth of municipal tax breaks for vacant commercial properties The city dished out $17 million worth of municipal tax breaks in 2016 for commercial and industrial property owners who reported a shortfall of tenants. The tally is in a report to council’s finance and economic development committee, which will be asked Tuesday to slowly kill a special rebate program for property owners. The city previously only had rebate totals up until 2015, but the report published this week shows a substantial increase in tax breaks for the subsequent year. The municipal portion of the tax break was $13.7 million in 2015 and that, too, was an increase from the $12.3 million in 2014 and the $8 million in 2013. Commercial property owners consider the city’s phase-out plan a “slap in the face,” according to one industry rep. “We’re big economic drivers,” said Dean Karakasis, executive director of the Building Owners and Managers Association of Ottawa. “It will be hard to be a cheerleader for this city given this.” Karakasis said the city chose the “least vile option” to eliminate the rebate program, but he believes the city is downplaying how upset property owners are about the plan. “There’s an advocacy route that will certainly take with council,” Karakasis said. That the city is spending more money on funding rebates should be no surprise to the city since vacancies are increasing, he said. Commercial properties have accounted for 94 per cent of the rebates and industrial properties have accounted for six per cent. The city wants to phase out the rebate program by the 2019 taxation year. Under the staff proposal, the rebate would gradually decrease each year until