The provincial government’s decision announced this week to enable short-term relief to the Alberta shallow gas industry is welcome news, says Al Kemmere, president of the Rural Municipalities of Alberta and a Mountain View County councillor.
The move will provide forgiveness of a portion of municipal property taxes on specific wells and pipelines identified by the government.
“Shallow gas companies are in a tough situation, and it’s been essential to work with the government of Alberta and industry representatives to come up with short-term solutions to support the industry,” Kemmere said in a release Tuesday.
“We recognize that municipal and education property taxes are not the core cause of the industry’s struggle, but are likely the only area in which short-term relief can be found, so we are pleased with the government’s announcement as it helps the industry without unfairly penalizing rural municipalities.
“In the long term, property taxes should not be seen as a tool for relief.”
The province’s move will permit municipalities to “reduce overall property taxes for companies, and it allow companies a temporary reduction in operating expenses, while also ensuring that municipalities will still receive a portion of property taxes from impacted companies in order to adequately provide municipal services,” he said.
See more in next week’s Gazette.
