The Saskatchewan Real Estate Association says the decision means the government has chosen to spend the money rather than invest it in reforming the property tax system. At the end of next year the money will be gone, with no lasting impact.
REALTORS say the one-time lump sum could have been the down payment on a five-year transition that would cut school property taxes in half, permanently.
A 50% cut in school taxes would cost roughly $350 million. The equalization money would have allowed the province to make the first one or two years of school property tax reductions without having to draw on provincial revenue flows. In subsequent years the expanded fiscal capacity of the province that has led to the “have” designation would allow the government to sustain the reduction in the same way it has been able to reduce income taxes over the last five years.
If the government truly intends to reform property tax,
the minimum acceptable action is to set objectives.
· Commit to shifting at least half of school costs off property over the next five years.
· Make the reduction permanent with a cap on the school mill rate.
· Address the municipal side of property taxes by indexing local government funding to the growth in provincial tax bases.
Property tax is a tax on the most widely-held kind of
capital, the property of hundreds of thousands of individuals and families all
over the province. It is often a family’s largest asset,
and the most common form of collateral for entrepreneurs.
Information: Bill Madder
306-373-3350