Municipal tax dollar decrease for 2017

Property owners will benefit from a 2.62 per cent municipal tax decrease, approved by Strathcona County Council.

“Strathcona County is looking at our programs and budget requirements through a new lens and perspective,” says Mayor Roxanne Carr. “Well positioned fiscally and with the recent implementation of priority based budgeting, we are able to effect a tax decrease at the same time as we fund new initiatives for our community.”

The municipal tax decrease was achieved by looking at budget to actual spending, budgeting less conservatively, and applying priority-based budgeting to fund areas of higher priority. This decrease also includes a further .47 per cent reduction, over the 2.15 per cent reduction approved in the 2017 Budget, to capture actual property assessment growth that exceeded earlier budget projections. This further decrease avoids collecting tax revenues in excess of the 2017 Budget requirements.

The 2017 budget includes: purchasing land for a multi-purpose agriculture facility, service enhancements relating to the Community Halls Sustainability Strategy, and operationalizing new facilities such as the Emerald Hills Leisure Centre and Regional Park. Municipal tax dollars also fund and maintain roads, fire, ambulance, police, recreation, parks, culture, transit, planning, agricultural, economic development and community social programs. 

A portion of the taxes the County collects goes to the Government of Alberta for education, the Heartland Housing Foundation for social housing and the Strathcona County Library.

When all four tax requirements are weighted together – municipal, provincial education, Heartland Housing and library – the total tax decrease is less. Given this, for a sample single-family residential property assessed at $430,000, the total 2017 residential property tax decrease is approximately 0.9 per cent. The property owner will pay $27 less in total property taxes for the year.

Properties may see a decrease more or less than 0.9 per cent, depending on how their property assessment changed relative to the average. July 1, 2016 is the valuation date.

Tax notices will be mailed in mid-May. The tax payment deadline is Friday, June 30, 2017.

Property owners can find out the estimated tax amount on their property through the County’s online Property Tax Calculator. This self-service tool provides the total amount, and annual and monthly property tax breakdown. It also shows how tax dollars are divided to deliver municipal services.

More information.

Set in the centre of Alberta’s energy and agricultural heartland, Strathcona County is a thriving, successful and vibrant community of over 98,000 residents. Strathcona County is made up of the urban area of Sherwood Park and a large adjacent rural area of farms, acreages and smaller hamlets. It is home to 75 per cent of refining in Western Canada. With a focus on economic, governance, social, cultural and environmental sustainability, Strathcona County is committed to balancing the unique needs of its diverse community.

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Contact: Strathcona County Communications, 780-410-6595

Background – 2017 Property Taxes

Sample property

A sample single family residential property assessed at $430,000 will pay approximately $154 per month ($1,852 per year) for the municipal services portion of their property taxes in 2017. This breaks down to:

Municipal Services

Also as part of residential property taxes for this sample property:

2017 tax dollar per cent decrease/increase (rounded)

2.6 per cent decrease - municipal services 

0.0 per cent increase - Strathcona County Library

0.0 per cent increase - Heartland Housing Foundation (residential)

2.1 per cent increase - provincial education (residential)