According to the latest report from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB), Yorkton has the second-largest property tax gap of Saskatchewan cities.
The CFIB study looks at 75 municipalities and 31 rural municipalities with populations of 1000 people or more. They measure the tax gap between residential and commercial properies valued at $200,000.
On average, commercial property owners paid 2.21 times what residential owners paid in municipal property taxes in 2016 across Saskatchewan.
“Property taxes have an impact on businesses,” said Jennifer Henshaw, Senior Policy Analyst for CFIB in Saskatchewan.
Yorkton had the second-biggest gap among the 15 Saskatchewan cities studied by the CFIB. Commercial property owners paid 3.26 times what residential owners paid in property taxes in 2016.
In 2015, the Yorkton tax gap was 3.12, meaning it had a gap growth of 4. 49 per cent.
Elsewhere, Warman had the lowest municipal gap with 1.39 while Prince Albert had the highest gap with 3.86.
In the report, CFIB offered several recommendations to local governments, including a long-term plan to shrink the gap, reforming outdated policies, and introducing a base tax for homeowners, if applicable.
“They’re common sense recommendations,” Henshaw said. “The report is meant to spark discussion.”
