WHEREAS local governments strive to ensure the method of taxation applied to property owners matches the service provided, whether it is based on assessed value of land andor improvements or parcel taxes; AND WHEREAS the provisions of the Community Charter with respect to parcel taxes are limiting and do not provide the application of a fair and equitable tax in all cases: THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the UBCM petition the provincial government to amend Section 202 of the Community Charter to allow the use of assessment class as a limiting characteristic in the establishment of parcel taxes.
Ministry of Community Services The Ministry of Community Services Ministry is aware that local governments are striving to match the costs of delivering a service to the benefits received by property owners. In certain instances, when a service benefits individuals, rather than improves the utilization of land and improvements, applying a parcel tax results in an owner of multiple properties making multiple payments. The Community Charter provides local governments with the opportunity to apply creative methods in determining classes of parcels to suit the characteristics of the service being offered. Previous legislation was based on narrower, prescriptive lists of characteristics. Section 2022 of the Community Charter describes the three methods of applying a parcel tax unit basis, frontage basis andor area basis. When frontage and area are used, the differing physical characteristics of the parcels must be used to identify each class; fairness and equity amongst these classes is required. Assessment classes, however, have little to do with the application of a parcel tax system. The eight assessment classes in British Columbia are designated by regulation BC Reg 43881 under the Assessment Act. Different assessment classes rely, to a lesser or greater extent, on different valuation methodology: e.g. comparative sale information, income approach based on revenue generating potential of a property, historic cost approach, and prescribed valuation rates. Because of these different methods of valuation and the unique characteristics of land and improvements in different classes, the Province uses defined classes of property in applying a property value tax. The use of assessment classes does not readily reconcile with a parcel tax system because parcel taxes are not tied to the concept of property valuation. The Ministry is prepared to take the issue raised in this resolution under advisement and look into the difficulties which arise when applying parcel taxes to certain services.