Halifax Water proposes new five-tiered system for “ditch tax”

HALIFAX – Halifax Water has filed another application with the province’s Utility and Review Board to change the way residents are charged for stormwater service.

Rather than charging each homeowner the same stormwater fee on their bill, the utility has proposed a five-tiered system based on the amount of hard surfaces on the property where runoff flows into municipally maintained ditches and culverts.

The utility dealt with thousands of complaints after the so-called “ditch tax” moved to water bills in 2014 and many residents successfully appealed the charge by arguing their properties didn’t drain into municipal infrastructure.

It’s unclear if those exempt from the charge would still be exempt under the new regime, which would replace the current annual charge of $33.39 for all homeowners.

New proposed fees by impervious area/hard surfaces on property:

Under 50 square metres : $ 0
50 to 200 square metres: $14 per year
210 to 410 square metres: $27 per year
410 to 800 square metres: $54 per year
810 square metres or larger: $81 per year

Halifax Water indicated based on the new proposal, about 2,300 customers with under 50 square metres of impervious surface would not be charged after previously paying the average of $33.39 per year, which was mandated by the UARB.

Roughly 44,000 customers would see their annual fee drop to $14 per year under the newly proposed regime, while about 31,000 would see about a $5 drop to $27 per year.

The top levels of hard surfaces on properties would see steep increases, with about 7,700 customers set to see their annual bill increase $20 annually to $54, while another 2,100 will see a $48 increase to $81 per year.

Halifax Water said the new rate application is based on the Cost of Service Manual recently approved by the UARB and a public hearing on the matter is scheduled for Jan. 23.

The proposal is still subject to approval from the provincial regulatory body and is expected to be reviewed in 2017.