A capping program has been mandated, by the Province, for business taxes since 1998.
The first program was introduced in Bill 79, The Fairness for Taxpayers Act, which required capping tax increases from reassessment to 10% in 1998, and a further 5% in 1999 and 2000. In 2001, the Province continued with the 5% limit on reform related tax increases until they reached Current Value Assessment (CVA) levels. (Bill 140)
The following capping options have been available since 2005. These have been adopted by Council for the 2005 and subsequent taxation years:
In 2009, the following additional capping options have been made available:
| Taxation Year | Property Class | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Multi-residential | Commercial | Industrial | |
| 2012 | 14.14% | 33.56% | 4.42% |
| 2011 | 15.56% | 31.17% | 5.37% |
| 2010 | 42.19% | 34.84% | 21.21% |
| 2009 | 100% | 41.66% | 14.01% |
| 2008 | 53.16% | 63.37% | 59.28% |
| 2007 | 57.42% | 69.93% | 19.24% |
| 2006 | 60.07% | 68.97% | 11.25% |
| 2005 | 35.27% | 71.60% | 25.75% |
| 2004 | 28.04% | 80.11% | 37.75% |
| 2003 | 33.09% | 93.75% | 100.00% |
| 2002 | 3.46% | 87.23% | 47.74% |
| 2001 | 3.17% | 93.48% | 21.62% |
| 2000 | 27.27% | 44.83% | 30.26% |
| 1999 | 83.31% | 87.11% | 98.16% |
| 1998 | 83.06% | 87.11% | 98.16% |
The Region and its local municipalities were permitted to levy municipal budgetary increases over and above the "cap" limit.
The legislation permits Niagara Region to recover all or part of the cost of the "cap" by one of or any combination of the following:
Niagara Region has continued to mitigate the costs of capping by withholding (or clawing back) an equivalent amount of available tax decreases within each of the protected class.