Average King Township homeowner faces $51 tax hike in 2019

King Township council approved a 2.3 per cent increase in net levy requirements to support the 2019 operating budget

Yorkregion.com
March 20, 2019
Sheila Wang

An average King Township homeowner, with a home valued at $835,500, will pay an additional $51 on the municipal portion of their 2019 property tax bill.

King Township council approved a 2.3 per cent increase in net levy requirements to support the 2019 operating budget at a council meeting on March 18.

“Council and staff have worked hard over the last few months to put together a budget that meets the needs of the residents and businesses of King Township,” Mayor Steve Pellegrini said.

Council came to the decision after a township-wide survey online and rounds of public consultations.

The planning department initially recommended a 2.8 per cent increase at the first round of deliberations at a council meeting on Feb. 25, where council proposed to reduce the increase by 0.5 percentage points.

Allen Evelyn, director of finance, presented the revised operating budget increase -- 2.3 per cent -- at the council meeting on Mar. 18. He also delivered to council the 2019-22 capital budget program, which includes 138 capital projects and totals $125.8 million.

Resident Neva Lorenzon, who presented a tax analysis to council following the Evelyn’s presentation, said the tax rate in the township has been “too high for too long.”

“We have come to a new normal, or a new plateau. And we’re increasing from that point on. That 2017 tax increase really did a number on residents,” said Lorenzon, who suggested the township the reduce tax rate to offset assessment increases.

In 2017, an average homeowner in King Township had to pay $143 extra on the municipal portion of their property tax bill, representing a 2.32 per cent tax hike.

Last year, council adopted a zero per cent increase in the township's next tax levy requirement, which reduced the tax rate by eight per cent on the municipal portion of the property tax bill.

“We’ve passed a budget with an increase that is aligned with the cost of inflation, but still makes investments that will benefit all of King for years to come,” Pellegrini said.

For every residential tax dollar collected by the Township, the estimated portion retained by King is 40.03 cents. York Region gets 40.39 cents and the province gets 19.58 cents for education.

In addition to infrastructure investment, property tax dollars pay for a wide range of programs and services, including snow removal from roads and sidewalks, road and bridge repairs and maintenance, fire and emergency services, parks, arenas and four library branches.

The total approved 2019 operating budget of King Township is $42.3 million.

York Regional Council approved a $3.2-billion operating budget for 2019 on March 8, including a 2.96 per cent tax increase and additional one per cent tax levy toward a new reserve to accelerate roads construction.