Dear Editor:
You have recently published some misinformation. The municipal government tax increase in the District of North Vancouver will be 2 per cent, not 3 per cent or 3.5 per cent as suggested in the April 20 article by Jeremy Shepherd. The decision to shift (or not shift) the tax burden from the industrial classes to the residential class will be made at an upcoming council meeting and the proposed shift would see the residential tax increase move from 2 per cent to 2.22 per cent. The additional .22 per cent represents about half a cent on the mill rate or about $4 on an $800,000 residential property.
The tax shift policy has two components, the ability for the industrial classes to enjoy the benefit of their own investments; their actual dollar amount of the municipal budget stays constant even as the total assessed value of their properties increases. This lowers the mill rate that industry pays and brings them closer to the regional average. This part of the policy I support and believe we should continue with.
The second component is the transfer of $120,000 of tax burden from the light industrial class to the residential class. This is contemplated because the class is so small that those properties will not be able to significantly reduce their mill rate by investing in their own properties. This is the policy that would cause the residential payers to see an additional $5 in tax on their bill. So people understand the relative size of the two property classes, the residential mill rate would increase by about .5 cents allowing the light industrial mill rate to drop by about $2, moving significantly closer to the regional average.
It is the shifting of the $120,000 that concerns me. On its own, the $4 burden is not so great as to cause a home owner financial pain and is going to help the light industrial business in our community which is a good thing. However, when we add $4 to the additional tax burden that our residents are now exposed too, the $36 general tax increase, the TransLink increase, the additional gas tax, significantly increased utility costs and taxes, the question becomes one of the total increased tax burden, and I believe residents are truly feeling the pain.
Roger Bassam, councillor District of North Vancouver
