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If they are worth their salt, members on both sides of the
legislature will rise-up and smite the bill to allow municipalities
to put a temporary cap.on property assessments,

It’s a bad plan, an unfair plan, an unnecessary plan that
doesn’t deserve their consideration, let alone support,

Municipal Affairs Minister Rita J ohnston admitted she telt
“uncomfortable” about the bill and introduced it only in
response to the pressure of heavy, lobbying from Vancouver city
council and other Lower Mainland municipal politicians, She
should have gone with her instincts and turned them down flat.

Granted, the bill is not as awful as Vancouver's original plan
because it allows capping of land assessments only, not.
assessments on improvements, and: applies only for one year,
But the principle behind it is stil] unacceptable,

What it will mean, if implemented, is that taxes will be shifted
from those whose Property values have increased the most to

_ those who have benefited the least from the boom in housing

Prices. It means that homeowners and tenants of lower-value
Properties, mestly on the east side of the city, will be subsidizing
those who have suddenly found themselves ‘sitting on gold |
mines, mostly on the west side.

It doesn’t matter how small the.subsidy is for individual
property owners — that’s just plain wrong. re

It isn’t as if the government hasn’t already previded some
‘relief to homeowners facing the prospect of Sharply increased
property taxes, it has raised the homeowner grant by $50 ($70
for the disabled and seniors), and expanded the landtax
deferment program, now available to anyone over 60,

The government has also raised the amount of provincial aid
to municipalities: Vancouver's budget includes an increase of
$5.5 million in provincial revenue Sharing grants, or 31.5 per ,
cent more than last year. That's money that doesn’t have to be
raised from property taxes, .

If there are cash-poor owners of those real estate gold mines

who still can't manage, they can always ask the bank for a loan

against their huge increase in equity or, if the worst comes to

the worst, sell and move on at a nice profit. . .

Mrs, Johnston says her department is trying to find a way tq.
avoid sudden increases j assessments. Well, itusedtohave -
a pretty goad system when assessments were done, and open to
appeal, every year rather than every two years.as at present.

The government could save itself a lot.of trouble if it _
resumed carrying out assessments on an annual basis, .
Otherwise the next jump in assessments ini t generate enough.
Political heat to start a political forest fire,

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