(Quebec) Following the conclusion of the new pact with municipalities, the Legault government tabled its bill on municipal taxation on Thursday.
The legislative text from the Minister of Municipal Affairs, Andrée Laforest, concretizes a commitment made by the government with the new pact, as revealed The Press Wednesday. It enshrines in law the annual payment to municipalities of revenues derived from the growth of one QST point, a measure introduced with the previous pact concluded in 2019.
This financial transfer will represent 445 million in 2024, 881 million in 2028 and one billion at the turn of 2030, according to estimates from the Ministry of Finance.
Between 2020 and 2024, 826 million will have been transferred to municipalities thanks to this measure, according to Quebec.
A new formula for sharing this envelope between municipalities will be negotiated so that it is no longer based solely on the size of the population. This is a potential gain for smaller municipalities.
The “QST point”, as the measure is nicknamed, will therefore no longer be the subject of negotiation to ensure its renewal since it will be enshrined in law. The measure is, so to speak, armored; a government should reopen the law to challenge it.
Cities want this transfer to diversify their sources of revenue and be less dependent on property taxes.
According to the government, the bill also gives additional powers to municipalities in matters of taxation and housing.
The Press unveiled the details of the new fiscal pact on Wednesday.
Municipal associations approved the agreement Wednesday.
More details to come