Turner Valley residents will be paying more in property taxes this year.
Town councillors approved Turner Valley’s 2016 tax bylaw on May 18. The mill rate will stay at the same level as 2015, but higher property value assessments and the provincial education tax requisition will result in a higher tax bill for most residents.
The total tax bill for the typical Turner Valley home with a ‘low-range’ assessment value of $317,000 will rise by 5.2 per cent per cent, or $165, this year to $3,335. The municipal share takes up $2,579, while $756 will cover the provincial education portion of property taxes. As well, the education portion takes up 42 per cent of this year’s increase.
Mayor Kelly Tuck said council did its best to keep property taxes as low as possible.
“It was and even going into this, I think all of us knew there wasn’t going to be a change in the mill rate,” she said. “We didn’t do a change in our Fortis agreement this year either… I think people are in a position, and continue to stay in the position, of where their families are hurting.”
A significant factor in this year’s taxes will be an increase to how much the provincial government is seeking for the provincial education portion of property taxes.
The provincial education requisition for Turner Valley totalled $89.9 million for 2016, well up from $80.4 million in 2015.
Tuck said the increase is significant and has a double impact on homeowners. She said the Town is facing the same increase on education taxes for its own properties and the increase will ultimately have to be factored into municipal property taxes.
“It’s a huge double whammy,” she said.
Barry Williamson, Turner Valley CAO, said the Town has no control over the provincial education requisition.
The Turner Valley budget, approved in December, includes just over $6 million in spending. At the time, the budget included depositing $312,598 in the Town’s reserves and amortization funds. However, council decided last week to reduce this amount by $15,000 to keep the Town’s mill rate at 2015 levels.
Williamson said the decrease resulted in a slightly lower tax increase for residents, while ensure the Town is continuing to save for the future.
“We’re still putting money in the reserves because it’s what you have to do,” he said.
Tuck said there wasn’t much more room to make any other changes to the budget to bring the final tax bill down any further.
“It’s never an easy decision, if we could’ve reduced the mill rate that probably would’ve been a better avenue, but we can’t,” she said. “We can’t go backwards. “It was a tough decision, so the best decision was just holding the mill rate exactly where it is.”
The Town’s 2016 budget includes funding for new pathways, playground improvements, water metre replacements and new street and speed signs.
Tuck pointed out Turner Valley also has just over $7 million worth of flood projects this year that have been fully funded with provincial disaster relief program dollars. She hopes the Town will be able to wrap up work this year, but she isn’t certain if it will be.
