A discussion about property taxes and religious institutions stoked some embers in Tiny Township council chambers last week.
At the recent committee of the whole meeting, a notice of motion from Coun. Steffen Walma was raised regarding the possible property taxation for places of worship. Walma was quick to explain the heart of the matter.
“Before we get into the controversial component of this, I actually think that this discussion is much shorter than what people may be thinking,” Walma began.
At its core, Walma explained that through the Ontario Assessment Act, municipalities do not have the authority to change taxation policies.
“One of the reasons why this is important to me is not necessarily specific to Tiny; this is a broader – across Ontario, across Canada – piece, and it’s about fairness and equity in my opinion," Walma explained to his council colleagues.
Walma explained that institutions that service all residents pay in lieu of taxes, such as hospitals (per bed) and education facilities (per square foot); charities also pay property tax and are not tax exempt.
“I would say things that offer services – to all are paying into the system," he said.
“And in places of worship there’s different religions; they don’t fit everybody’s model – and they are exempt, and they still use those municipal services. I would like the province to give the municipalities the choice as to how and if they tax churches, places of worship.”
On the Simcoe County GIS site, eight places of worship are located within Tiny Township with a total 2016 assessed value of $2,835,000. These include: Ste. Croix Parish in Lafontaine at $623,000; St. Volodymyr & Olha Ukrainian Catholic Church at Cawaja Beach at $480,000; and the St. Florence Catholic Chapel in Thunder Beach at $443,000.
Mayor Dave Evans supported Walma’s motion asking for a letter to be sent to the Ministry of Finance and the Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO), that they would ask the province to request ‘that municipalities be delegated authority if and /or how it implements tax policy on places of worship’.
Said Evans: “If we have an opportunity to gain some measure of control over our taxable revenue, I’m all for it. I appreciate Coun. Walma specifying that this is by no means a motion to start taxing people or anything like that; it’s merely giving us an opportunity to consider that as part of our taxation policy.”
Coun. Kelly Helowka comments regarding charities and the Canada Revenue Agency were addressed by Walma as relating more to income tax than property tax.
Walma added that if the province delegated authority as per the motion, “there would be significant revenues that could be afforded, and to other revenue streams – my personal interest being affordable housing initiatives.”
However, a voice of opposition came from Coun. Dave Brunelle, who referenced reasons why religious institutions should be tax exempt, courtesy of research done by his wife.
The notes Brunelle read from drew directly from web entries on an opinion poll from Narrative Research, as well as a list of pros and cons from the Encyclopedia Britannica which touched on the history of separation of church and state.
A point of order was raised by Evans, who stated, “You’re moving this into a discussion of the place of religion in society, and I don’t believe that’s relevant to this motion.”
“So, places of worship are not religious?” countered Brunelle.
Evans replied, “It’s in the context of the motion.”
Brunelle summarized his thoughts shortly after, sharing his faith in the province to do good for Ontario residents as the designated authority over tax exemption.
Said Walma: “In rebuttal, I would say that municipalities are always looking for more power on… everything.
“This is about the municipality having ‘the choice’,” Walma emphasized. "This is not a discussion about choosing to exempt or not exempt right now; this is about bringing that ability for us to choose."
As Brunelle protested his claim a second time, Deputy Mayor Miskimins called another point of order and asked for the vote; it was carried.
Archives of council meetings are available to view on Tiny township’s YouTube channel.
