City council finalizes downtown improvement area tax bylaw
By Al Beeber - Lethbridge Herald on February 2, 2022.
LETHBRIDGE HERALDabeeber@lethbridgeherald.com
City council on Tuesday unanimously gave second and third reading to Bylaw 6337 to establish the 2022 Downtown Business Improvement Association Area tax bylaw.
The bylaw authorizes council to impose a 2022 tax on all businesses operating in the Downtown BRZ to collect enough funds to meet the DBIA board budget which will be approved in March.
The bylaw establishes classes of businesses and direct the City’s assessor to prepare the 2022 business assessments.
It also outlines businesses that are exempt from the DBIA levy and authorizes the City assessor to create the DBIA assessment and tax roll for imposing a BIA tax levy. It also establishes a minimum tax of $120 a year.
Council has to pass this bylaw before May 1 due to provincial regulations.
The minimum levy applies to all businesses who operate or lease space for the purpose of operating for a minimum of one month within the calendar year.
In 2021, City administration determined after a review that the tax bylaw should be brought forward before an assessor establishes the assessment roll. That roll has to be finished to establish the mill rate for the DBIA tax rate bylaw which which will be presented in April.
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No more money for downtown until the riff-raff are gone! Enough, already….