OFA Warns Rising Farmland Values Could Create Tax Burden

Jan 25, 2013

Ontario Federation of Agriculture Concerned about Farmland Values in Relation to Farm Taxes

The President of the Ontario Federation of Agriculture (OFA), Mark Wales says that he is concerned that with farmland values on the rise in the province that many farmers could be hit with a disproportionate tax burden in their 2013 property tax bills.

Farmland values have grown to outplace residential values, which has pushed farm taxes higher. With this new phenomenon, the increase in values will mean that farmers will be on the hook for a larger share of the bill for municipal services and infrastructure.

Municipalities in the province set the farm tax rate as a percentage of the residential tax rate and the farm tax rate is intended to take into consideration the lower amount of municipal services that are required of farm properties. Instead, Farmers do pay residential tax rates for their home dwellings, plus one acre of their land. The increase in farmland values compared to housing prices may lead to a tax burden shift onto farm properties.

The OFA is currently working with 52 of its county federations to work with members so that they have the right tools to advocate and express their concerns to their municipalities.

Video: Finding a Balance of Innovation and Regulation - Dr. Peter Facchini

Regulations help markets and industry exist on level playing fields, keeping consumers safe and innovation from going too far. However, incredibly strict regulations can stunt innovation and cause entire industries to wither away. Dr. Peter James Facchini brings his perspective on how existing regulations have slowed the advancement of medical developments within Canada. Given the international concern of opium poppy’s illicit potential, Health Canada must abide by this global policy. But with modern technology pushing the development of many pharmaceuticals to being grown via fermentation, is it time to reconsider the rules?

Dr. Peter James Facchini leads research into the metabolic biochemistry in opium poppy at the University of Calgary. For more than 30 years, his work has contributed to the increased availability of benzylisoquinoline alkaloid biosynthetic genes to assist in the creation of morphine for pharmaceutical use. Dr. Facchini completed his B.Sc. and Ph.D. in Biological Sciences at the University of Toronto before completing Postdoctoral Fellowships in Biochemistry at the University of Kentucky in 1992 & Université de Montréal in 1995.