Rolling up the numbers on the civic tax rolls

“Let me tell you how it will be
There's one for you, nineteen for me'
Cause I'm the taxman, yeah, I'm the taxman”

Prince Rupert residents will soon receive an invitation from the city in the mail, an opportunity to pay up on their utility bills by March 31 and to receive a 10 per cent discount.

Miss that deadline and you’ll have until December 31st to make your peace, miss that deadline and the interest starts to roll and you’re 2008 bill next February will look a lot larger.

It’s a change for the city which used to include the utility bills with the property tax notifications in June, but left the city with a scramble for revenues for the first six months of ever year. The city by offering up the carrot approach to civic taxation (i.e.: the discount) is hoping that Rupertites pay up in full and pay up early.

The Friday edition of the Daily news had a complete review of the plan as well as a reminder at just how much more Rupertites pay compared to their Northwestern neighours.

The Rupert tax bill will check in at more than $800 per household, compared to Terrace residents who paid $326.10 in utility fees and households in Smithers who paid $438.52 when the last figures for 2005 were provided.

Rupertites will no doubt be looking around town for the next little while, trying to discover which of our civic services are twice as good as the neighbours, that they justify twice the cost on the tax load .

Changes to utility bills in ’07 all about cash flow
By Leanne Ritchie
The Daily News
Friday, February 02, 2007
Page one

For the first time, the city intends to have its annually utility bills out to residents in the middle of February, with this year’s bills expecting to come in at more than $800.

People have until the end of March to pay these bills, and if they make the deadline, they get a 10 per cent discount.

If they don’t make the March 31, 2007 deadline, they have until December 31, 2007 to pay.
No interest charges will be placed on the bill until year end, at which point the utility bill begins to collect interest and gets added to the 2008 taxes.

The city changed the way it collects for utilities to solve its shortage of cash between spring and summer, when property taxes are collected.

“In 2006, utility bills were included with your taxes,” said Jim Bruce, the city’s acting Chief Financial Officer.

“For the city we have a cash flow problem around March. We don’t have enough cash to get us through.”

In the past, the city would have to borrow money to get it to the point where tax money started coming in.

“Of course, you start paying interest on three million dollars worth of borrowing and it adds up to a fair amount of money,” he said. “So this way, we won’t have to borrow any money, so we will be able to keep the cost of running the municipality a little lower.”

The bills being sent out this February cover the 2007 calendar year.

For people who pay City Hall, the only difference is that the bills are arriving a few months earlier than their taxes. For people who have a pre authorized payment plan with the city, their payments will be automatically transferred from their tax account to cover their utility bill and the discount will apply.

However, those who have been making tax payments to their bank as part of their mortgage, this bill may come as a bit more of a shock than to most.

Mortgage companies will no longer be responsible for paying utilities.

The city decided to raise water, sewer and garbage rates by 12.5 per cent this past December, and then offer the 10 per cent discount as an incentive for users to pay their bills by March 31, 2007.

According to the bylaw rates passed in December, Prince Rupert fees for residential home owners come in at $838.92 — $300.36 for water, $265.32 for sewer and $273.24 for garbage.
If people pay by the March 31, 2007 deadline, there is a discount of $83.89, bringing the total down to $755.03.

When compared to the rates for Terrace and Smithers, Prince Rupert’s rate are significantly higher.

According to the Union of British Columbia Municipality rate survey, Terrace residents pay $326.10 in utility fees and Smithers residents pay $438.52 (although keep in mind, these numbers are dated for two years ago.)

Acting Mayor Joy Thorkelson did not return calls for comment.