Property tax incentives

Overview

New legislation will help municipalities attract investment and development by giving them the power to offer stronger property tax incentives to business and industry:

• The Municipal Government (Property Tax Incentives) Amendment Act – received royal assent June 28, 2019
• The Municipal Government (Machinery and Equipment Tax Incentives) Amendment Act – received royal assent December 5, 2019

These multi-year tax incentives give municipalities the tools they need to encourage economic development by reducing the burden of starting a new business, and providing more incentives to redevelop brownfield properties and revitalize communities.

Key changes

The Municipal Government (Property Tax Incentives) Amendment Act:

• allows municipalities to decide if, and how, to implement the tax incentives by passing a single bylaw that will:
  • offer incentives to reduce, exempt or defer the collection of property taxes for non-residential properties for up to 15 years, with the option for renewal
  • establish an eligibility criteria and application process to streamline tax incentive offers, instead of requiring a separate council resolution or bylaw for each property

The Municipalities Government Amendment Act (Machinery and Equipment Tax Incentives):

• allows municipalities to pass a bylaw enabling them to reduce or eliminate property taxes for up to 15 years on machinery and equipment

These changes make Alberta a highly attractive destination for investment by providing one of the longest municipal tax incentive timelines in North America:

• Saskatchewan allows property tax incentives for up to 5 years
• B.C. allows them for up to 10 years
• Louisiana offers 5-year incentives with an option to renew for an additional 5 years
• Texas offers local tax incentives for up to 10 years

Next steps

• The Municipal Government (Property Tax Incentives) Amendment Act came into effect June 28, 2019
• The Municipalities Government Amendment Act (Machinery and Equipment Tax Incentives) came into effect December 5, 2019

News

• Enhancing economic tools for municipalities (November 27, 2019)
• Revitalizing municipalities across Alberta (June 4, 2019)