HomeMy WebLinkAboutFIN 02-14 c,,,, no A. Report to
_,. Vi=a Executive Committee
PICKERING Report Number: FIN 02-14
Date: January 20, 2014
From: Paul Bigioni
Director, Corporate Services & City Solicitor
Subject: Delegation of Authority to the Assessment Review Board Under Subsection
357(1)(d.1) of the Municipal Act, 2001, for an Application for Sickness or
Extreme Poverty
Recommendation:
1. That Report FIN 02-14 of the Director, Corporate Services & City Solicitor be
received;
2. That the attached By-law be approved; and,
3. That the appropriate officials of the City of Pickering be authorized to take the
necessary action to give effect thereto.
Executive Summary: The City of Pickering has been approached by property owners
requesting property tax relief as a result of sickness or extreme poverty. Local economic
conditions, changes in life circumstances, and/or unforeseen circumstances are
ultimately what leads to situations where property owners are unable to pay their
property taxes.
Subsection 357(1)(1.d) of the Municipal Act, 2001 allows a municipality to cancel, reduce
or refund property taxes due to sickness or extreme poverty. These types of appeals are
not administrative in nature and therefore tend to be more complex and lengthy. It is
recommended that these appeals be heard by the Assessment Review Board ("ARB") as
an independent third party from the municipality. The ARB staff have received special
training to deal with these types of requests. The attached By-law transfers Council's •
authority to review property tax relief requests due to sickness or extreme poverty to the
ARB.
Financial Implications: Every year, there is a budget provision for property tax write-
offs. It is anticipated that the delegation of authority to the ARB will not result in an
increase to the budget provision for write-offs. Property tax relief applications are year
specific and therefore the ARB may only review taxes billed during the year and not
arrears accumulated from prior years. Assistance is intended to be temporary in nature,
during which time the taxpayer would be able to re-evaluate their circumstances and
make necessary changes. Any reduction in property taxes will be shared by the City,
Region and School Boards in the same manner in which the taxes were originally levied.
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Report FIN 02-14 January 20, 2014
Subject: Delegation of Authority to the Assessment Review Board Page 2
Under Subsection 357(1)(d.1) of the Municipal Act, 2001,
for an Application for Sicknessor Extreme Power
Discussion: Section 357 of the Municipal Act, 2001 provides for the cancellation,
reduction or refund of property taxes. This section requires Council's approval on an
annual basis for property tax relief to property owners as a result of occurrences such as
building demolitions, destruction of property caused by fire, changes to property tax
classes, and the inability to pay taxes because of extreme sickness or poverty.
The City has been approached by two property owners seeking relief from property taxes
due to extreme sickness or poverty. The City should have a mechanism in place to
address these types of requests. While the Municipal Act is silent regarding formal
guidelines, staff believes the intention of this provision is to provide taxpayers in extreme
situations with temporary financial assistance, during which time they can consider their
situation and make changes as needed.
City staff surveyed a number of municipalities to determine how they deal with these
types of requests. Some larger municipalities have adopted programs for tax relief
whereby applications are reviewed and processed internally by a committee established
by the municipality. Administration of these programs require extensive staff time and
expert consultation. Determining and administering the guidelines for this program is
difficult due to the specialized expertise required to fairly evaluate the applicant's
financial or medical situation. Applicants denied tax relief by these municipalities may
appeal to the Assessment Review Board.
Several other municipalities across the province have passed by-laws to delegate the
powers of their Council under section 357(1)(d.1) to the Assessment Review Board.
Such municipalities include Toronto, Mississauga, Ottawa, Whitby, Hamilton, and
Kawartha Lakes. Many other municipalities are currently considering this option.
The ARB is an independent adjudicative tribunal whose main function is to hear appeals
from taxpayers who believe that their properties are incorrectly assessed or classified.
The Board also deals with some property tax appeals, including the review of
applications by property owners who are seeking relief based upon sickness or extreme
poverty. ARB staff have received specialized training to adjudicate these types of
appeals.
The Assessment Review Board is provided with information such as income, expenses,
assets, and other supporting documentation from experts such as doctors, in order to
make their decision. Since any tax relief must be funded from other taxpayers, applicants
must be able to demonstrate to the Board that without this assistance, they would
otherwise be unable to pay their property taxes.
If Council chooses to delegate this authority, then staff will notify any property owner who
has expressed an interest in this type of relief to submit an "Application for Tax Relief to
the Treasurer. Property owners will have the option of making application directly to the
Board, however, City staff would encourage applicants to submit their applications
directly to the Treasurer. The Treasurer then can assist applicants by ensuring that the
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January 20, 2014
Report FIN 02-14
Subject: Delegation of Authority to the Assessment Review Board Page 3
Under Subsection 357(1)(d.1) of the Municipal Act, 2001,
for an Application for Sicknessor Extreme Power
•
necessary application documents are in proper form, and can explain the ARB hearing
process. This will contribute toward Community Engagement, one of the City's corporate
priorities.
•
The Treasurer would then forward a copy of every application received to the registrar of
the Assessment Review Board and to MPAC. The Assessment Review board is
responsible for scheduling a hearing and for reviewing information and documentation
submitted by the applicant at the hearing. Ultimately the Board would make a decision on
the amount of taxes that should be cancelled, reduced or refunded. The Board is familiar
with this process and renders decisions that are fair and consistent.
Attachments:
1. By-law to authorize the Assessment Review Board to Exercise the Powers and
Functions of Council Under Subsection 357(1)(1.d) of the Municipal Act, 2001
"Prepared By: Approved/Endorsed By:
onna DeLong Stan Karwows
Supervisor, Taxation Division Head, ance & Treasurer
•
4.
Paul Bigioni
Director, Corpor., - .- es & City Solicitor
Recommended for the consideration
of Pickerin• City Co ncil
/ `Dac- 24, zaI
Tony revedel, P.Eng.
Chief Administrative Officer
The Corporation of the City of Pickering
By-law No.
Being a by-law to Authorize the Assessment Review (ARB) to
Exercise Certain Functions of Council with Respect to Property
Tax Relief Due to Sickness or Extreme Poverty
Whereas, Council is authorized to delegate the exercise of powers and functions set out
in the said subsection 357(11) of the Municipal Act, 2001 to the Assessment Review
Board;
Whereas, the Council of the City of Pickering wishes to restrict the scope of the
delegation of authority.
Now therefore, the Council of the City of Pickering enacts as follows:
1. The Assessment Review Board (ARB) shall only exercise the power and function of
Council under section 357 (1) (d.1) of the Municipal Act, 2001 in respect of an
application for the cancellation, reduction or refund of taxes where the applicant is
unable to pay taxes because of sickness or extreme poverty.
2. Administrative fees associated with applications made under Section 357 (1)(1.d) of
the Municipal Act, 2001 shall be waived.
3. That this By-law come into effect on the 27th day of January, 2014.
By-law passed this 27th day of January, 2014.
David Ryan, Mayor
Debbie Shields, Clerk
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