Halifax to hold tax rate steady, but property bills will still increase
Posted Mar 27, 2025 12:35:06 PM.
Last Updated Mar 27, 2025 01:46:41 PM.
The property tax rate in Halifax will not be going up as part of the 2025-26 municipal budget.
On Wednesday, councillors completed a debate on the Budget Adjustment List, or BAL, determining what needs to be added or removed from the proposed budget.
Ultimately, councillors managed to keep the tax rate flat for the upcoming fiscal year at $0.770 per $100 of assessment.
Property tax bills however will still be increasing thanks to rising assessments, meaning an increase of 4.7 per cent overall. That’s down from the original 7.4 per cent increase proposed by staff at the beginning of the budget process.
“In the election campaign I committed to fight to keep the tax rate flat, and today our budget committee delivered,” Mayor Andy Fillmore wrote in a post to his Facebook page.
One of the large items impacted by the decision to hold the tax rate steady is a move narrowly approved by councillors last week that will see the city take $10 million from the Central Library reserve fund.
The budget will receive final approval from council in April.
