A long,
long time ago, with a government not too far away, the rulers levied property
taxes to pay for local goods and services such as infrastructure and programs
like arts, education, justice and recreation. Since then property taxes have
become a staple of governments around the world and used to varying degrees. I
have yet to talk with anyone who says they like paying property taxes.
This project is a first in the world and heralds a new era in asset management, capital planning, fiscal management, and improved neighbourly relations. The revenue goal is cost recovery including funding reserves for future capital projects of all infrastructure and programs provided by the Town.
I would
like to put forward a new system of user pay for those who dislike paying property
taxes. In conjunction with cctv (closed circuit television camera) suppliers,
mega data analysis using advanced algorithms and logarithms, logistical
analysis, and increased collaboration with the federal and provincial
government, it is my opinion that property taxes can be eliminated. In a pilot project with the suppliers, both private and governmental, the tools will be
implemented to assess each individual, and grouped by family, a fee for the use
of all goods and services in Kindersley. Users from other jurisdictions who are
travelling through Kindersley or using our infrastrcuture and programs will
also be billed in our system.
Here is a brief overview of the project. The images recorded by the cctvs will be transmitted
to a local data centre where advanced algorithms and logarithms analyze the
images for a variety of factors including:
·
Vehicle
speeds and weight,
·
Unsightly
yards including long grass,
·
Footfalls
on sidewalks,
·
etc.
Once the
analysis has been completed the information will be self-generated into a
billing database and on a regular basis, perhaps monthly, a bill will be sent,
through email or Canada Post, to the users; there will also be family billing
as well. These practices are very similar to current best practices in many large
firms except we are using the information differently.
What type
of things will be charged? Everything.
·
Sidewalk
usage,
·
Road
usage, including:
·
Heavy
trucks
·
Bikes,
·
Walking,
·
Skateboarding,
·
Parking,
·
etc
·
Facility
usage,
·
Park
usage,
·
Lighting
usage,
·
Water
usage (currently),
·
Waste
water (currently),
·
Solid
waste (will be improved),
·
Environmental
usage such as:
·
C02
emissions,
·
02
consumption,
·
Land
usage,
·
Good
neighbour relations:
·
cluttered
yards,
·
long
grass,
·
no
snow removal is recorded and will be billed accordingly.
·
nuisance
and unhygienic behaviour such as:
·
drunkeness,
·
public
urination,
·
spitting,
and
·
etc
·
Security
·
i.e.
speeders, jay walkers, and distracted drivers,
Another
aspect to be considered is a credit for users who act with environmental
awareness and are good neighbours. If you are a nice person you could get
credit for:
·
Picking
up litter,
·
Shoveling
your neighbours snow,
·
Cutting
your neighbours grass,
·
Planting
a tree and other plants, and
·
Etc.
We are also
looking at supplementary revenue development. The funds raised through this
system will be given to social agencies such as West Central Crisis Centre,
Minor Soccer, Square Dance Club and more. The supplementary revenue is raised
through images recorded on cctv that people might be a little shy in sharing
with loved ones and the public. For example: if you have an affair and it is
recorded for posterity on cctv you can either share the images with your loved
ones and the public or contribute to the supplementary revenue fund for local
social agencies. As an example: after your affair is recorded you may want your
money donated to the West Central Crisis Centre to offset the fees needed to
work on your marriage or divorce.
These are
some of the things we are looking at and the technology is there to measure
usage. You have seen the technology used in the, photo radar, face recognition,
marketing analysis, logistics, and more. The technology is here and we want to
harness it for the good of Kindersley. Here is how it would work. Consider, you
need a jug of milk from the store and you decide to drive:
·
Start
car – an environmental charge
·
Car
runs continuously is an ongoing charge until the car is turned off at the store
and again at home.
·
Back
car onto street – charge for usage of street until you get to the store
·
Includes:
·
Crossing
sidewalk if you have one, and
·
Crossing
curb and gutter
·
At
the Store you may:
·
leave
the car running – charge
·
turn
the car off – no charge
·
The
cameras record if you speed and you would be assessed a fee according to the
type of use
·
If
the store has a parking lot then there is no charge for parking
·
If
you park on the street then there is a parking charge for use of infrastructure
·
If
you walk on the Town sidewalk then there is a charge for the use of the sidewalk
based on the number of steps
·
After
you finish shopping you return to your car and go to the Events Centre to pick
up your daughter
·
you
are charged an environmental fee for using the car plus an infrastructure fee
for the use of the roads
·
you
park at the Events Centre and a camera recognizes you and your car and you are
billed
·
each
step you take is billed and another fee is activated when you open the door to
the facility
·
each
activity you do in the Events Centre such as the number of steps, washroom use,
canteen use, dressing room entrance and the like are all billed to you as well
as your daughter’s use of the facility
·
As
you leave the facility and go home all of that is recorded and billed to your
family account
It’s simple
isn’t it?
Also, your
home will be assessed for its environmental impact and land usage. A large home
would be charged more because it takes more space and emits more particles into
the environment. The same type of assessment occurs with commercial and
industrial businesses. Again, the principle is user pay.
Let’s
consider neighbourliness. I have been surprised by the number of requests I
have had to help people deal with their problem neighbour. With the new system
there is no need to complain about your neighbours because the camera records
if their grass is too long, if their yard is unsightly, or if their garbage is
not in a can but only in a bag. The same applies with noise and nuisance
behaviour. Those activities contravening the bylaws and other laws are charged
at a higher rate than normal usage. The same applies to the speeders around
town and trucks that are over their weight limit. There is no longer any need
to complain about bad neighbours and traffic violators because they are on
camera.
There are
many other areas in which you will notice subtle little changes and we are sure
that it will make life much more enjoyable for everyone. This change will also
have many policy implications over the years for the way governments tax and
businesses operate.
This is a
pilot project, the first in the world, and as such there will be stuff we get
wrong or isn’t quite right and stuff we get right. So, please help us make this
right so you don’t have to pay property taxes. During the transition this is
how things will briefly work. During the first year data will be collected and
analyzed. This analysis will be compared to the current property taxes to
ensure stable revenue for the Town and that the fees reflect market value and
are not burdensome to users; the charges have to be fair and market driven.
The second
year bills will be sent out to collect revenue while property taxes are not
issued but kept track of to compare with the billings. This will be done on an
ongoing basis to ensure that the system works.
As more
data is collected and analyzed the more fine-tuned the project can be better
reflecting usage and growth. The end is in sight for property taxes and we will
endeavor to ensure that the collection of revenues charged by the Town are
enough to ensure the sustainability of Kindersley and its infrastructure and
services.
Nobody that
I have spoken with likes property taxes and now here is the first step to
eliminate those taxes and usher in a new era of business rationalization in municipalities.
AFD
