Whereas housing affordability is a key challenge in many communities facing high median home prices, including a number of homes that are vacant; And whereas the Province reported that in 2018, 58 million was collected under the Speculation and Vacancy Tax program; And whereas the Province gave the City of Vancouver the power to impose its own vacancy tax, which has provided Vancouver with approximately 40 million in additional revenue: Therefore be it resolved that UBCM request that the provincial government provide local governments with the power to levy their own Speculation and Vacancy Tax, so that they too can address housing affordability and other community effects of vacant homes.
Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Ministry of Finance The Province is committed to working with our local government partners to address affordable housing issues in BC. The Province has taken a number of tangible steps, including implementing the 30-Point Plan for Housing Affordability and working with the federal government to develop a National Housing Strategy. One part of the 30-point housing plan was the introduction of the speculation and vacancy tax. This tax is contributing to the ongoing moderation of BCs housing market and applies in large urban centres where affordability is most acute. The tax is designed to turn empty homes into housing for British Columbians. All revenue generated by the speculation and vacancy tax is required to go into the Housing Priority Initiatives Special Account, which supports affordable housing initiatives in the areas where the tax is collected. The government has committed to an investment of 7 billion in housing affordability over 10 years. The speculation and vacancy tax is just one of the funding components to support these significant housing investments. Designing an authority for a vacancy tax for local governments would require amendments to the Community Charter. As local governments vary greatly in resources and needs, further discussion is required before considering legislation beyond what was granted to the City of Vancouver in 2016. While enabling legislation would not necessarily be used by every community, it would have to be useable and under the Community Charter, that means useable across a diverse range of communities throughout the province. The Province will continue to monitor the impacts of the provincial speculation and vacancy tax, the Vancouver Empty Homes Tax, and the recently announced commitment by the federal government to impose a property tax on foreign owners before considering providing all local governments in BC the authority to impose their own similar taxes.