We’ve seen some comments lately about the budget, what the tax rates are this year, about industry taxes, and, to get specific, what’s going on with the spray park project.

Here’s what’s going on as of today!

What is in the budget and what are this year’s taxes?

The short answer is: it’s still being discussed.

Budget deliberations in Kitimat take place during our open Council meetings and the first budget discussion happened at the January 5 meeting.

District staff consider what Council’s priorities are for the upcoming year, and take into account anything else required such as inflation (we, too, deal with increased costs on materials), required commitments to our reserves (this means we don’t get one massive bill when we need a new fire truck, for example), and anything else that will affect the budget.

This is then presented to Council and from there they direct what they want or don’t want, to get to an eventual budget decision. For discussion purposes, Council was presented with a draft 4.79% general tax increase to meet the initially presented budget.

This number is not the final amount and is a springboard for discussion.

Is it true that LNG Canada does not pay taxes?

LNG Canada, as a company that would be taxed through industrial property tax rates, does pay taxes but they are currently under a special taxation agreement.

What this means is that rather than paying taxes on the land’s assessed value, they have a negotiated special tax agreement that lasts up to 2028.

The District of Kitimat still collects revenue through this agreement, but it is a fixed amount rather than based on property value.

What does this all mean for the spray park?

Just like everything else with the budget, Council will provide the direction.

For background, you may have heard that District staff are seeking direction on this project before the end of January. This is because the budget for this project would need to be approved this month in order to receive the spray park equipment for installation this year.

Council will continue to deliberate on this project along with all the proposed projects for the upcoming year to determine the next steps.