City tax crunch less noticeable (Penticton)

By JOHN MOORHOUSE Wednesday, July 30, 2008 Penticton Herald

Penticton‘s annual tax crunch has arrived -- only this year things are a little less “crunchy” at City Hall. The city will be collecting $47.7 million in overall taxes this year, including school, hospital, regional district and other taxes. The city‘s own general tax levy amounts to $22.8 million Ð up from $21.2 million in 2007. Tax deadline is Thursday at 4 p.m. to avoid a 10 per cent penalty. City collector Lorne Raymond expects the heaviest line-ups to occur today since many residents don‘t want to leave their payment to the final day. However, Raymond said line-ups are noticeably shorter this year due to a couple of recent improvements. For the first time, provincial home owner‘s grant applications can be filed online, in addition to city tax payments. The city has also acquired new computer software which doubles the number of cashiers able to handle tax payments and home owner grant applications. The two utility payment cashiers can now accept payments in addition to the two tax counter wickets. “This is the first year people have been able to claim their home owner grant electronically,” he said.

Residential property taxes in Penticton went up an average of 4.95 per cent this year. Additional increases in electrical, water and sewer levies were also approved during city council‘s 2008 budget deliberations. The late payment penalty is 10 per cent of the outstanding tax bill. If still unpaid by Jan. 1, 2009, additional interest will be charged on the amount in arrears. About 97 per cent of taxpayers pay their bills on time.
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Don Quixote Note: The reason I posted this article was the taxation deadline date of late July in Penticton. I checked their website and the line that jumped out at me was 'City taxes are due the last working day of July. Any outstanding balance after the deadline date is subject to a 10% penalty.'

I was always under the impression that all cities and municipalities had the same tax deadline date but if this is correct I was mistaken. I still remember City Hall staff saying that the tax procedures re deadlines and penalties if overdue are written in stone and can't be changed. I will be exploring this new information and will post my findings asap.(see below)

Options for tax due dates 233 Property taxes are due as follows:

(a) if the municipality has not established an alternative scheme, in accordance with the general tax collection scheme under section 234;
(b) if the municipality has established an alternative scheme under section 235, in accordance with the election of the owner under section 236.

Don Quixote Note: If you read the above link to the Community Charter it appears that the municipality can set another tax deadline date and indeed its own penalties and discounts that can be applied to the tax due date.

Hey, big spender!

By Jeremy Deutsch - Kamloops This Week - June 08, 2008

A new report by a group representing Canadian small businesses suggests municipalities in B.C. — including Kamloops — are overspending to the detriment of the taxpayer. The Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) report looked at municipalities’ operating expenditures between 2000 and 2006 and found that, on average, municipalities were spending 1.8 times more than the growth of population and inflation. According to the report, Kamloops was spending 1.66 times more than growth and inflation. Based on what the CFIB calls a “fiscal responsibility gap”, the City of Kamloops overspent by $8.6 million in 2006 alone. Laura Jones, vice-president of CFIB Western Canada, said the findings are problematic because incomes aren’t necessarily going up faster than inflation, leaving less money in taxpayers’ pockets. But a bigger concern for taxpayers, Jones said, is whether the spending is sustainable.

She said the spending may be fine over a six-year period, but it raises serious questions if the rate of spending continues. “What plans do mayors and councils have to make sure spending increases are reasonable going forward?” Jones asked. The report also indicated if spending at the local government level had been kept to the growth of population and inflation over the last six years, taxes across the province could be 17 per cent lower. “These are hard-earned taxpayer dollars that are being spent,” Jones said. “I think there needs to be a level of accountability and scrutiny around this spending.” She pointed out small businesses already pay more in taxes, so they are hit particularly hard by overspending.

But Mayor Terry Lake scoffed at the report, calling it “unfair.” He said the CFIB forgets that creating a community that people want to live in is good for business and that city spending is directed by the wants and needs of residents. The report makes a number of recommendations, including taxation laws that would tie local government’s operating spending to the rate of population and inflation growth. Lake said it’s not realistic to use inflation as a measuring stick because the city’s spending needs — which include things like asphalt for roads or steel for construction — increase at a different rate than inflation. Lake pointed out that property tax increases in Kamloops in the past 10 years have been fairly close to the rate of inflation. “These kinds of studies tend to paint everyone with the same brush,” he said. And Lake argued that in Kamloops, the situation is positive for residents and businesses. “I would say we’re doing the right thing in terms of the way we’re managing the city,” he said. The city with the worst rating in the report is West Vancouver, which spent 3.94 times the growth in population and inflation.
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Don Quixote Note: The reaction from Penticton can be found in an article Report finds fault with municipal spending levels

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UBCM questions spending report Penticton Western June 8

The organization representing municipalities in British Columbia is defending itself against charges from a business group critical of municipal spending. The Canadian Federation of Independent Businesses said in a report last week that municipal spending in British Columbia is out of control. Property taxes would have been 17 per cent lower if municipalities had tied their spending to inflation and population growth, a charge now refuted by the Union of British Columbia Municipalities. “I don’t think it is practical to suggest that local governments in British Columbia should arbitrarily drop property taxes by 17 per cent,” said Susan Gimse, UBCM president. “Our residents expect local governments to provide infrastructure and deliver services that improve the livability, health and safety of our communities. They want high quality drinking water, adequate levels of policing and recreational facilities for our children to play in. This costs money.” Gimse also used repeated her comments that the current model of financing local governments through property taxes is outdated. “There is only one taxpayer and when you have the federal and provincial governments lowering taxes and running surpluses, what do you think will happen at the local level?” she asked. Local governments need a wider array of options for funding services at a local level, she said. “This has been a constant theme from our membership for some time now, and we will continue to make this point.”

Vernon is #5 in Fiscal Responsibilty. (That's 5th worst)

Vancouver – In its first annual BC Municipal Spending Watch released today, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business found growth in municipal spending is out of control: Overall municipal spending in BC increased by 36 per cent between 2000 and 2006—1.8 times more than the 20 per cent increase that would have occurred if spending had been held to population and inflation growth (see figure in backgrounder). Full Report

Of the 28 largest municipalities in the province, not one local government was able to keep spending increases below the benchmark level of population and inflation growth. Nine of BC’s largest cities had spending that was more than double inflation and population growth including Prince George (2.6 times), Port Coquitlam (2.54 times); Vernon (2.42 times) North Vancouver (2.33 times) Victoria (2.19 times); Chilliwack (2.19 times); Penticton (2.13 times), Vancouver (2.05 times) and Richmond (2.03 times).

Other Local Areas: Armstrong 1.93, Coldstream 1.59, Enderby(-.7o), Lumby 4.77, Spallumcheen .96

Property Tax Estimator now online at City of Veernon

To estimate your 2008 municipal taxes, enter the property assessment values from your BC Assessment Notice in the boxes below. Please note: This estimated calculation only applies to the 2008 tax year. Enter the assessed value of your properties: http://www.vernon.ca/services/finance/property_tax_estimator.html If the people who live in Coldstream want to compare tax rates with the City of Vernon simply plug in your 2007 and 2008 assessments and then compare them to your actual Coldstream Tax notices. This will be an indication of the cost or benefit of amalgamation. Please feel free to leave your comments as to your tax saving or increase taxes that you enjoy by living in the 'rural living at its best' community.

Vernon only pays $175.01 more for the same average house in Kelowna.

When you put in the Vernon 2007 and 2008 average house assessments into the Kelowna Residential Tax Calculator
you get the results on the left. It appears that Vernon is narrowing the tax gap when compared to Kelowna. Although we pay $175.01 for the same valued average house in 2008 this is an improvement from the $237.00 difference in 2007. (See Vernon's published figures here.)