It could be that MPAC assessments may be having more of an impact than Wellington North council first imagined.
Incorrect property assessments and last year’s issues over problems with those figures, may now be having a spillover effect into township levies to local conservation authorities.
On Monday night, councillors looked to Treasurer John Jeffrey for answers as they faced another round of increases to those levies.
Jeffrey said that overall across the three different conservation authorities which affect Wellington North (Saugeen, Maitland and Grand River), there have been increases.
At the same time, he said they are not as big as increases that Wellington North has experienced in prior years.
“In some cases that may have been because they were not only listening to ourselves, but other municipalities,” Jeffrey said.
But, he added, with the reassessment in 2008, the shift in assessment among municipalities to individual conservation authorities has changed.
“That was pointed out in the letter from the Maitland Valley Conservation Authority.”
He noted Wellington North’s increase is not as much as the overall increase, because of that shift. Jeffrey said the change affected the Saugeen Valley assessment as well.
Councillor Ross Chaulk asked, “What’s going to happen because of MPAC’s screw-up in the assessment?”
“They had some wrong. What happens if they change, and we’ve been billed according to the old information? Are they going to send us back a refund?”
Jeffrey said he expressed similar questions.
“Certainly in our 2009 assessment there were some significant errors in the assessments, which would impact on our share of the total assessment (in the watershed), that the levies are based on.”
“That is the other need for the accuracy of that data.”
He said in the township office, things can be corrected for local use, and sorted out.
“But when it impacts in this way … I don’t know what sort of updates the conservation authorities get.” He agreed that he will certainly be asking those questions.
“Don’t hold your breath,” muttered Chaulk.
