Residents of one Saskatchewan rural municipality don’t have to worry about staging a tax revolt.
Their municipal government isn’t collecting property taxes this year.
The RM of Colonsay is refunding close to $200,000 in 1999 municipal taxes on agricultural land to its ratepayers. Cheques have been issued and are being distributed this week.
Reeve Jim Gray said the refund is intended to provide relief to farmers squeezed between low grain prices and high input costs.
“We thought that’s the only way we could do something for our ratepayers is to pay this back and that’s what we did.”
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The tax rebate doesn’t leave the RM penniless. It is still collecting about $270,000 in property taxes from local businesses, with the vast majority coming from the IMC Kalium Colonsay potash mine.
Gray said he doesn’t think too many RMs could afford to forego $200,000 in tax revenue.
“We’ve been very, very frugal with our money in the last few years and this is the only reason that we can do it.”
Other than scrimping in a few areas, it will be business as usual in Colonsay.
“The only thing that we won’t do is we won’t buy any new machinery or equipment and we won’t be building a bunch of roads.”
No construction plans
He said the RM completed a number of road projects last year so the lack of new construction and upgrades shouldn’t be a problem for farmers hauling grain in 2000.
Gray said 298 cheques averaging $1,500 to $2,000 will be sent to agricultural landowners in the RM. He said it may help them pay some of their income tax bills and it sends a message to provincial and federal governments that the situation in rural Saskatchewan is desperate.
“We’ve done our part at this level of government, so it’s up to the others,” said Gray.
“The province has to kick in first, otherwise the feds won’t do anything.”
Lone municipality
Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities executive director Ken Engel said as far as he knows Colonsay is the only RM giving tax money back to its ratepayers.
“They have a fairly large taxpayer in that mine,” said Engel.
“I guess that gives them a little more flexibility.”
Many other RMs rely on their agriculture landowners for their tax dollars, said Engel.
Blair Holland, who operates a garage in Colonsay, said almost everybody in the RM supports the tax rebate, which was unanimously passed by council.
“The idea was to make a statement and they have. The sad part is it
hasn’t even got the notice of our provincial or federal officials,” said Holland.
“The RM knew they weren’t going to bail any farms out. They weren’t going to change anybody’s life with the return of this money, but it’s a statement that we’re doing what we can.”
The tax refund hasn’t generated a reaction from the provincial or federal governments.
“I’m afraid it might be all for naught,” said Holland.
