Letter writer’s number crunching on city taxation rates add up

By Lethbridge Herald on December 8, 2022.

Editor

Thank you, Joan Haig for confirming my calculations. My number ($495) is lower than yours ($661.29) for two reasons. First, because I rounded down to 22 per cent. Actually, 22.01433692 per cent of $3,000 is $660.43, practically the same as yours; but city council only controls 76 per cent of that, which really means the fourth year increase due to council’s portion is $501.93. However, I also rounded down the tax on a $285,500 home to $3,000. 

Studying the city’s online GPS tax map, I calculated the 2022 tax rate as $91.67 per thousand dollars assessed value. 

Using that, the tax on a $285,500 single family residence would be $3,114.35. City council’s portion is 76 per cent of that, which works out to $2,366.91. And 22.01433692 per cent of that is $521.06. I will go back to rounding for the rest of this discussion. $520 divided by four is $130 in year one, $260 in year two, $390 in year three, and $520 in year four for a total tax increase of $1,300 after the fourth year. 

With no further increases, the tax on an average-market-value, single-family residence will remain at $520 more than the 2022 tax but only if the assessed market value also stays constant for the next four years.

 Historically, assessed market values go up. My calculation of $130 each year is practically identical to council’s number $129.93. 

Mayor Hyggen told the truth, and nothing but the truth. Joan Haig and I are just adding the whole-truth part.

Marinus Boogaart

Lethbridge