Livability Tax Program

The Livability Tax Program is Canmore’s version of a vacancy tax that would apply to homes in our community occupied by people who do not live there full-time.

I think the Livability Tax has excellent potential as a tool to help Canmore deliver non-market housing solutions to support our community and local businesses.

It isn’t just what you do, it is how you do it. And we have not yet done the work to figure out how to set up the Livability Tax Program in a way that achieves its outcomes, and also respects that the people who own property in Canmore and are subject to this increased tax rate also have rights.

I did not vote for the subclass in June 2024 and warned my colleagues that proceeding with this new tax program without first establishing the processes and thresholds that would be applied would put the Town of Canmore at risk of provincial government intervention.

I also did not vote in favour of the Livability Tax budget. Without guardrails or thresholds that tie the tax directly to measurable standards for how it is set, the tax could become an appealing discretionary fund that could be abused, resulting in significantly high tax increases without notice.

The situation has changed now that the Premier issued a mandate letter to the Minister of Municipal Affairs on Sept. 22 that sets direction to protect Albertans from a tax like the Livability Tax. This is significant, and the next council must make essential decisions on proceeding.

I am not in favour of moving ahead with the Livability Tax in 2026. We must seriously consider delaying implementation until after the Property Tax Task Force has completed its work. I also believe there needs to be a comprehensive housing plan that sets out how non-market housing will be developed over the next 20 years, and that would help determine the need for the Livability Tax in the future.

The Livability Tax is an idea worth developing and fighting for, but we cannot use it in a way that crosses the line of appropriate tax increases for property owners. Regardless of who owns a property, its taxation should be fair, transparent, and accountable. That is why we need to continue the Property Tax Task Force's work, develop a housing action plan, and speak with the minister to understand what interventions the provincial government will take.

This is complex, and we are innovating around tax policy. We need to go slow to go fast. The urgency to address our housing situation should not circumvent the need for public consultation, budget, and policy development work.