Abbotsford Chamber of Commerce president Mike Welte says the Chamber is pleased with the trend to reduce the property tax ratios in every class. Welte spoke at the meeting as Council considered the 2015-2019 Five Year Financial Plan Bylaw.
“The business community (Property Class 6) still pays 2.45 times the residential rate per $1,000 of assessed value,” said Welte. “However, the reduction of the ratio from 2.9 in 2009 to 2.45 in 2014 has been certainly welcomed by the business community and the Chamber.”
The chamber cited the fact that, when combined light industrial (Class 5) and business (Class 6) account for 31.6 per cent of the total municipal tax revenue but make up only 5.2 per cent of the total tax folios in the city.
Welte added: “This further illustrates the point that business and industry, who grow our economy and create jobs for our citizens, pay a highly disproportionate amount of tax. According to the objectives & policies of the bylaw – tax distributions should be set to attract commercial and industrial development in an effort to maintain or strengthen the financial health of the city.”
