Rural Municipalities Association president is hopeful the provincial government will resolve the issue in upcoming year
The problem of oil and gas companies not paying their property taxes or surface lease payments doesn’t seem to be going away despite the sector recording massive profits this year.
However, relief may be coming for rural municipalities and land holders, according to the president of the Rural Municipalities of Alberta.
“I’m confident this government, working with landowners, working with the industry folks, is going to solve this problem. We realize that we’re at a commodity price that this should not continue,” said Paul McLauchlin during a media availability with Agriculture and Irrigation Minister Nate Horner.
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“I think we’re not going to be talking about this in a year from now.”
Details on how the issue will be addressed are unclear.
But the scope of the problem comes from the RMA and its survey released earlier this year showing $253 million is owed to Alberta rural municipalities in unpaid property taxes for 2021, up from $81 million in 2018.
Keeping up to date on surface lease payments to landholders has also been a struggle for some oil and gas companies.
Under provincial legislation, landholders trying to force companies to pay outstanding leases must submit a claim at the Land and Property Rights Tribunal.
In one case, Nate Horner Ranches Ltd., which is owned by the agriculture minister, successfully secured a demand for payment for $10,000 from insolvent Forent Energy after the company failed to pay its $2,500 per year surface lease, according to a tribunal decision.
That decision, issued on Oct. 31, ordered the company be kicked off the site if proof of payment wasn’t provided to the tribunal by Nov. 30.
The original Horner Ranches’ application to the Land Rights Tribunal was filed in September 2020 seeking outstanding payment for 2018 and 2019.
An amended application was filed in January 2022 with the tribunal, accounting for the subsequent two years in which the case had yet to be adjudicated by the public body.
The length of time and costs of the adjudication process under sec. 36 of Alberta’s Surface Rights Act has been a common complaint of those in the agricultural community seeking redress for unpaid leases.
Horner advised landholders to use the processes of the tribunal, and “there are ways the (government of Alberta) can fill in the gaps on those payments.”
The provincial government launched its own survey of municipalities on the situation with unpaid property taxes in July 2022.
That survey was completed and presented to the government at the end of September.
According to a spokesperson with Alberta Municipal Affairs, results of that survey continue to be analyzed and are expected to be released in early 2023.
