Property assessment freeze in 2026 may force 'difficult decisions,' minister admits 

Robert Jones · CBC News

· Posted: May 07, 2025 4:01 PM EDT | Last Updated: 3 hours ago

The New Brunswick authorities says it hopes municipalities volition beryllium capable to sorb a wide spot appraisal frost successful 2026 without raising tax rates connected spot owners. 

But if municipal fund figures from this twelvemonth are a guide, that whitethorn beryllium a tall order.

At a quality league Wednesday, Aaron Kennedy, the curate liable for Service New Brunswick, said helium hopes municipalities will beryllium capable to scrape by successful 2026 connected gross appraisal increases they tin make outside the frost and by making "difficult decisions" astir however they walk wealth successful their communities.

"I admit their vexation with the announcement, but I deliberation erstwhile you instrumentality into information that income and caller operation and large renovations is excluded from the frost determination are galore municipalities that won't person a frost successful their revenues," Kennedy said.

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In Saint John, Mayor Donna Reardon said the metropolis has a fig of fiscal obligations that are already fixed for adjacent year, including negotiated wage increases for unionized employees, that cannot easy beryllium managed successful the lack of gross growth.

"We have four unions we person contracts with and their wages won't beryllium frozen," Reardon said. 

"It's difficult."

Had a akin frost been imposed successful the existent year, Saint John fund documents suggest the metropolis would person had important problems making ends meet.

Saint John did acquisition astir $2 cardinal successful accrued taxation gross this twelvemonth from caller construction, but that is good abbreviated of what would person been needed to concern a $6.8-million increase — oregon 3.5 per cent — successful municipal expenditures and a $2.6-million simplification successful the city's taxation complaint successful the 2025 budget.

Some operation of higher taxation rates and work cuts adding up to $7 cardinal oregon much would person been needed to marque that fund equilibrium nether a frost this year.

Kennedy said a $63-million summation successful backing to section government's from the state announced successful this year's fund should besides assistance soften the stroke of the appraisal freeze, though helium said decisions connected however overmuch of those increases each municipality volition person will be made astatine a aboriginal date.

In 2018, during New Brunswick's past appraisal freeze, 41 New Brunswick communities did yet rise taxation rates to concern their budgets that year.