WRAFT REPORT                     Summer 2005    Issue 3

 

 

From the Executive Director

 

In our last newsletter we listed a number of steps that had been taken to get our message across to the Ontario Government that the use of Current Value Assessment was causing an excessive share of tax to be shifted onto waterfront properties across Ontario.  We outlined the research we had conducted across North America, we mentioned meetings with provincial representatives and we outlined the specific reform proposals which were presented to Queens Park back in April. We also stated that we had urged the government to defer the 2005 assessment until 2006 to allow time for proper reforms to be implemented.

 

While we believed a few months ago that our message was getting through, more recently we have become concerned that no serious study of reforms is underway.  We are also concerned that changes in senior staff within the Ministry of Finance and recently the departure of Mike Colle to head another Ministry can only slow down any momentum there may have been to critically examine the property tax system.  In addition we see no indication that the 2005 assessment is going to be deferred.  Unless this happens, there is no question that there will be a further shift of tax in 2006 onto the waterfront.  In the face of the less than encouraging news, we are taking a number of immediate steps to draw attention to the fundamental unfairness of the present property tax system as it affects waterfront property owners.

• we have engaged IPSOS Reid to conduct a public opinion survey to examine general attitudes towards the need for property tax reform (see separate article)
• we plan an aggressive advertising campaign later this summer to get our story across to the broader public
• we are meeting with a number of MPPs, both those who may have influence on our issue and those who have large numbers of of waterfront property owners residing in their ridings
• we are identifying potential allies, other parts of the province without a waterfront issue, but where there has been a similar shift of tax caused by pockets of higher real estate values
• we continue to ask our member associations to have their individual members write their MPPs where they live and vote and be sure to send us a copy of the letters
• we have prepared a new brochure in a question and answer format and are making it available for association annual meetings as well as general distribution.  In addition Directors of WRAFT are speaking at a number of association annual meetings over the summer
• we are getting some media attention over the past few months, in Cottage Life, the Globe and Mail and the Toronto Star as well as in local papers like the Muskokan. The articles have all been accurate and positive and help raise the profile of our waterfront property tax issue

 

 

 

 

 

Why write your MPP?

 

It’s taking a huge effort to get our message across to the present government at Queens Park.  The problem in part is that the bureaucrats really believe that the present system of distributing property tax based on assessment is a fair system.  So far, so do the politicians. Here’s a quote from a recent letter signed by Finance Minister Sorbara. 

“As you are aware, all properties in the province and in most other jurisdictions in North America are assessed based on their current value.  Assessments based on current value provide clarity and transparency, ensure a fair distribution of taxes, and help keep assessments up to date.”

 

We know the present system is unfair, not fair, and we’ve said so on many occasions to the bureaucrats and politicians.  But we need more voices.  We need you to tell your MPP where you live and vote that this system is causing serious financial hardship and you want it changed. The individual experiences of waterfront property owners provide a powerful message.

  

Here are some quotes from some of the letters sent to MPPs.

 

“As my family has owned this property for 40 years (I inherited it), we don’t want to have to borrow money or even sell the property to pay the taxes.  In the past several years our taxes have gone up many times faster than our income has increased.  It’s just not fair.”

“It would be a shame to destroy the family traditions that have been established over the years because people like us can no longer support the tax burden of a waterfront property so that our children & grandchildren can enjoy what has been a way of life for all of us.”

“As I approach retirement, the reality is that I may have to sell my property if the present tax system remains unchanged.  How would you feel if your most prized possession were taken from you because you could not afford to maintain it? “

 

“Help, we’re two seniors drowning in location-based property taxes.”

 

“I am retired with no prospect of increases in income, the third generation owner and year round resident on our property.  The unconscionable rates of tax increases for this land are now at the scary stage.”

 

These are extracts from just a few of the many letters already received from individual members.  But your MPPs need to hear from many more of you and from the many parts of the province where our membership resides.  The original concept of WRAFT was to build a province-wide voice for property tax reform.  The building has been done but now we need to make our voices heard.  We have no way of communicating directly with the individual members of our 130 member associations. We’re counting on the email contacts we have at each association to distribute this newsletter to their membership.  The newsletter will also be on our website www.wraft.com. 

 

So please write your MPP and send us a copy.  Tell him or her how your taxes are escalating.  Ask that the 2005 assessment be deferred until proper reforms are put in place. Refer to the Call to Action on our website under News for further letter writing suggestions. Go to www.electionsontario.on.ca  and look under Find your Electoral District to get the name and address of your MPP. Also you can call 1 888 668 8683 for the same information.

 

 

 

 

Results of Public Opinion Survey

 

Views of Ontarians regarding the property tax system were sought in a recent independent professional public opinion survey conducted by IPSOS Reid.  Here are some highlights from that survey.

 

• 77% of those surveyed believe there should be a cap on the rate of property tax increases across Ontario
• 78% of respondents believe it is unfair for taxes on a waterfront property to rise dramatically because the value of a property has increased while non-waterfront taxes in the same municipality have stayed the same or decreased
• Two-thirds of those surveyed believe the property tax system needs to be reformed

 

We believe the results of this survey strongly support our call for reform and we will use this powerful message in our future discussions with politicians and the media.

 

 

 

WATERFRONT RATEPAYERS AFTER FAIR TAXATION (WRAFT) is a coalition of waterfront associations across Ontario.  It was formed to lobby for a more equitable property tax regime and for a halt to the ongoing shift of tax onto waterfront properties.

 

Contact

Bob Topp   Executive Director

131 Bloor St. W.  Suite 200  Box 263

Toronto, ON   M5S 1R8

Email   wraft@sympatico.ca                         Website   www.wraft.com