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Press release
9 May 2019

The Government Refuses to Help Municipalities Offset the 130 Million-Dollar Loss


The MNA representing Vaudreuil and Official Opposition Critic for Municipal Affairs, Marie-Claude Nichols, questioned the government today, tabling a motion at the National Assembly to ask the government to commit to paying all of its municipal taxes within the framework of the next fiscal pact with Quebec’s municipalities. The government, however, did not consent to the motion.

In accordance with the Act Respecting Municipal Taxation, buildings owned by the State and those associated with the health and education para public networks are exempt from municipal taxes, despite the fact that they benefit from many municipal services.

The Union des municipalités du Québec evaluates the revenue loss for municipalities at 130 million dollars annually.

Quebec is the only level of government that doesn’t pay all of its municipal taxes. Today I am asking the CAQ government to commit to paying all of its municipal taxes and thus better support Quebec’s municipalities by helping them to make up for the 130 million dollar loss in revenues, especially considering that a municipality’s main source of income is property tax.

—Marie-Claude Nichols, MNA representing Vaudreuil and Official Opposition Critic for Municipal Affairs




Text of the motion presented by the MNA representing Vaudreuil this morning:

“That the National Assembly acknowledge that, in accordance with the Act Representing Municipal Taxation, buildings that are owned by the State and those associated with the health and education para public networks are exempt from municipal taxes, despite the fact that they benefit from many municipal services;

That it acknowledge that a compensation program in lieu of taxes has existed since 1980 and in 2019 this program provides compensation of 71.5% for primary and secondary educational institutions and 84% for higher education institutions, as well as health and social services and daycare institutions;

That it acknowledge that the government of Quebec is the only level of government that does not pay its municipal taxes in their entirety, thus creating a loss of 130 million dollars in annual revenues, as evaluated by the Union des municipalités du Québec;

Finally, that it ask the CAQ government to commit to increasing to 100% the applicable compensation rate for buildings in the education and health and social services network, as well as for government buildings owned by the Société québécoise des infrastructures (SQI), within the framework of the next fiscal pact with Quebec’s municipalities.”