Skip to main content

“I am a Canadian, free to speak without fear, free to worship in my own way, free to stand for what I think right, free to oppose what I believe wrong, or free to choose those who shall govern my country. This heritage of freedom I pledge to uphold for myself and all mankind.” ~~ John G. Diefenbaker

MLA Todd Stone reintroduces bill to help reduce property tax for small businesses

 

Todd Stone, MLA for Kamloops-South Thompson and Opposition Critic for Jobs, Economic Recovery and Innovation, has reintroduced a bill entitled the Assessment (Split Assessment Classification) Amendment Act, 2020 in the legislature.

By creating a new commercial property sub-class, this bill enables local governments to reduce property taxes for small businesses facing massive tax increases on the development potential of their unused airspace.

“Businesses should only pay tax on the space they actually use — not on the air above them,” said Stone. “But as urban centres grow, densification is placing huge pressure on our local small businesses, particularly those on the Lower Mainland, through dramatically increased property taxes based on the highest and best use of undeveloped airspace.

In some cases, organizations have seen a 200 to 300 per cent increase in property tax bills. I’m introducing this bill for a third time, as the legislation pushed through by the NDP government earlier this year will not provide municipalities and businesses with the solution they requested as countless businesses were forced to close permanently.”


John Horgan called the Legislature back with only one piece of legislation, but British Columbians are expecting more ideas to address the challenges our province is facing. This bill would be an optional tool for local governments to cut property tax to a rate that makes the most sense for each unique situation they try to address.

The new rate would only apply to the unused airspace above a business, while the business premises would be taxed at its normal rate.

“During this pandemic downturn, it's critical to deliver on split assessment to relieve cost pressures caused by sky-high property tax assessments for small business, arts groups and non-profits,” added Stone.

“This solution is supported by a broad coalition of stakeholders. Our communities were already losing cherished local businesses to skyrocketing property taxes before the pandemic and we can’t let COVID-19 hollow out our neighbourhoods any further. I urge the government to call this bill for debate and take immediate action before more small businesses are lost for good.”

 

 

File: Split-Classification-for-Unused-Airspace-FAQ_Dec-2020.pdf

 
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

“4.5 million hectares of forest lands have burned since 2023, and the best they can do is point to a 90-hectare block being salvaged?” ~~ Ward Stamer, Kamloops-North Thompson MLA

Today, BC NDP forest Minister Ravi Parmar made this pronouncement; ‘Removing red tape has sped up permitting, allowing for more wood to be salvaged, quicker’. 4.5 million hectares of forest lands have burned since 2023, and the best they can do is point to a 90-hectare block?    ~~ BC Conservative Forests Critic Ward Stamer While acknowledging the NDP government has recognized improvements were needed in permitting and accessing burnt fibre in a timely fashion, the reality is, they are barely making a dent in the problem.  This government's recognition that only seven percent of pulp mill fibre came from burnt timber in 2024-25, quite simply put, is a failure. And the recent announcement, just three weeks ago, that the Crofton Pulp Mill would be permanently closing, is proof of that.     Instead of Premier David Eby’s government addressing core issues being faced by British Columbia’s forest industry, they are doing little more than manipulating the facts, ...
1 comment
Read more

A message from BC Conservative MLA Ward Stamer, and the Kamloops – North Thompson Riding Association

2025 was a busy first year. As a Caucus, we worked very hard to defeat Bills 14 and 15, legislation which allows the provincial government to move ahead without environmental assessments on renewable projects, and that also allows cabinet to build infrastructure projects without getting approval from local municipal governments. This is not acceptable to your BC Conservative caucus, and we will continue to press this government for open and transparent projects in the future.  Two things we had success in were having the first Private Members bill passed in over 40 years. The first was Jody Toors Prenatal and Post Natal Care bill, and then there was my private members Bill M217 Mandatory Dashcams in commercial vehicles (passed second reading unanimously and is heading to Committee in February). Regrettably, much of the legislation passed by the government was little more than housekeeping bills, or opportunities to strengthen the ability of Cabinet Ministers to bypass the BC legi...
Post a Comment
Read more

Wildfire waste plan torched -- Forestry critic Stamer calls BC's wildfire salvage rate 'a failure'

Claims that BC is making progress salvaging wildfire-damaged timber are masking deeper problems in the forest sector, the province’s forestry critic says. Last week, BC’s Ministry of Forests said mills in the province processed more than one million cubic metres of wildfire chips in 2024-25, up from 500,000 cubic metres in 2023 and representing about seven per cent of all processed wood. Kamloops-North Thompson BC Conservative MLA Ward Stamer said those claims of progress ignore the reality that only a fraction of burned timber is being used ... CLICK HERE for the full story
Post a Comment
Read more

Labels

Show more