And with the discussion taking a bit of a strident tone at the Council Session towards relations between the Port and the City, the North Coast Review contacted the Port to seek out their thoughts on the latest commentary from City Hall related to ongoing relations and the current PILT related situation.
At the January 9, 2023 Prince Rupert City Council meeting, Council discussed a report from staff regarding Payments In Lieu of Taxes (PILTs) and the Prince Rupert Port Authority’s employee compensation structure, and made statements implying that PRPA employees have a financial incentive to avoid municipal taxation payments.
The reply to our request for comment, came by way of a statement, emailed to the North Coast Review by Katherine Voigt, the Manager of Corporate Communications.
The document addresses the City Council charges of the Port employees having a financial incentive to avoid municipal taxation payments and returned to a familiar theme when it comes to the discussion of the PILT process, outlining as it has in the past, how those properties are assessed.
Property owners in Prince Rupert are required by law to pay property taxes. Technically, government bodies are exempt from property taxes, which includes PRPA in its role as a manager of federal crown land. Despite being exempt from taxation, through Payments In Lieu of Taxes (PILTs), PRPA pays to the City of Prince Rupert the same property tax as other property owners would pay for any property.
It is troubling that Prince Rupert City Council has drawn conclusions that suggest that PRPA and its employees are working against the best interests of its local community. PRPA and its 90 employees are proud members of their community.
PRPA properties subject to PILT are largely comprised of vacant, undeveloped crown land on Ridley Island and Lelu Island. Municipal property tax rates set by the City of Prince Rupert and District of Port Edward (and other property tax authorities) are applied to their assessed value to determine the appropriate payments. Once a property is leased to a tenant, it is not subject to PILTs and pays property tax directly to the taxing authority.
The Port observes in their statement that they were using the same appeal process available to every property owner, noting that The City was aware of the appeal being filed and the ensuing process. As a result of the appeals, the assessment methodology and the resulting assessments of those properties were recognized as being incorrect, and the Property Assessment Appeal Board issued orders that reduced the assessed values.
The PRPA also outlined that they have offered to enter into a collaborative process with local municpualties to review the value of the lands, however they note that both the City of Prince Rupert and the District of Port Edward chose to dispute those values through the federal and provincial processes established for such.
In the statement, the Port observers that any suggestion that the PRPA employees have a financial incentive to avoid municipal tax payments is based on a misunderstanding.
The Port's two page response outlines some of the projects that have driven growth and revenues for the region and also expresses concern over the conclusions that the City of Prince Rupert has taken through their report.
PRPA and its employees want to see the City of Prince Rupert and District of Port Edward succeed in funding and delivering dependable local services.
Our work to attract investment and development has more than doubled industrial tax revenues in the last ten years, providing the City of Prince Rupert with the distinction of having one of the strongest industrial tax bases and receiving one of the highest levels of tax dollars per capita in BC.
This information is readily available in the City’s financial statements and comparative local government data found on the BC Government website.
Prince Rupert Port Authority 2021 Economic Impact Assessment
The full document can be reviewed below.
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Also included in their information release are the links note above towards more information on the PILT Act, an Economic Study by the Port and notes on Municipal Tax Rates and Burdens in the province.
More background on City Council's Budget preparation and impact of PILT and other elements can be reviewed through our Budget Planning archive page.
Themes related to the Prince Rupert Port Authority can be explored through our archive here.
Cross posted from the North Coast Review.
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