Small businesses still paying too much municipal tax: CFIB

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VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – They say you don’t pay enough and that they pay too much.

They are the country’s small and medium sized businesses and with property taxes due in a few weeks, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business is out with new numbers showing a gap between merchants and homeowners still exists.

According to the CFIB, small business owners pay on average 2.78 times as much in property taxes as homeowners do on property of equal value. The group feels the difference is not only unfair, it’s downright harmful.

“It’s not money that is going into giving their employees raises. It’s not money that’s going into creating new positions or expanding businesses or investing in innovation or doing things that actually benefit the community,” says Shachi Kurl with the Federation.

She adds this is the third year in a row the gap between business and homeowners has shrunk, but Kurl feels more could be done.

“What we saw was a gap of 2.79 [per cent] last year, this year we’re looking at a gap of 2.78 and what we say around that is that progress in terms of getting tax fairness for small business owners across BC has stalled.”

A recent survey found nearly seven out of 10 CFIB members ranked their municipal property tax as being most harmful to their businesses. Six years ago, fewer than four in 10 felt the same way.

Broken down by community, North Saanich leads the CFIB’s “Worst Offenders” list, with a gap of 6.02 per cent.

Grand Forks, Revelstoke, Kitimat, and Vancouver were among the most improved communities.

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