Deputy Reeve Randy Eros of the RM of Ste Anne is asking Council to consider a long-term taxation strategy.

His concerns regard the increasing agricultural assessments and the subsequent higher taxes that follow it as an unsustainable means to meet the tax revenue requirements for their budget year after year.

“We’ve seen the increase in the assessment of agricultural consistently over the last decade or so, and the coffers benefit from that,” explains Eros, “but that increase assessment will not continue.”

The fallout from a decrease in agricultural assessments means that tax revenue would have to be accrued through different venues to meet the annual budget’s needs.

“Farm taxes have gone up significantly in the last decade,” says Eros, “and people in residents will see that happen because we will need to maintain the same budget.”

Eros suggests a “diversified budget plan” would ensure residents of the RM would not receive a large, unexpected tax increase when agricultural assessments eventually decrease.

“We have a number of tools in the kit,” assures Eros, “and one of them is looking at increasing the assets of the RM in different venues.”

One of those venues is already on the table in the form of industrial development which would assist in accumulating additional tax revenue.

Still, Eros thinks Council could “look at assessment portioning” for the different categories that affect residential, commercial, and agricultural land to better balance their sources of taxation.

Regardless of which actions Council decides to take, Eros is adamant that the strategy should be one that forecasts for situations that lay further ahead.

“It’s a question of having good plans,” says Eros, “If you’re just trying to react to everything that happens to you right now, you’re going to be in trouble.”