Nine Million Dollars saved for Montreal Ratepayers

Our January February issue of this paper discussed at some length the unprecedented resistance to a raise in the Evaluation Roll in Montreal. This resistance was promptly and efficiently organized by the Social Credit movement of that city...

Besides numberless phone calls to the councillors, 35,583 official protests from property owners were filed at the Assessor's office. Never before, in any revision year, had there been so much as one fifth that number. Every such case has to be heard before a special Revision Board appointed for the purpose.

It was difficult for the executive of the city to ignore such a storm of protests on the part of those who have to pay. But the executive is bound, by the charter of the city, to accept the Assessors' figures in the make-up of the annual budget. So the matter was laid before the private Bills Committee of the Legislative Assembly of Quebec, where application must be made for any amendment to or departure from the terms of the charter.

When the case was heard, the leader of the Montreal executive maintained that nine million dollars increase in the proceeds of taxation, which would arise from the new roll, were needed to balance this year's budget. Mayor Houde, however, pleaded the ratepayers' cause.

After some discussion, the Committee of the House backed a proposition, moved by Premier Duplessis, that the Municipal Council of Montreal be authorized to take a decision - either to have the new roll take effect, or to keep the former roll for one more year, while new sources of revenue would be investigated.

When the Councillors met at the City Hall a few weeks later, they did not hesitate to maintain the former roll for the coming fiscal year.

The charter of the city further states that the budget must be voted on, at the latest, by the 16th day of March. The city obtained from the Legislature an extension of thirty days, the finance department having to revise its figures without including the expected nine million increase in revenue.

This meant for the ratepayers of Montreal a saving, this year, of nine million dollars.

They owe it to the Social Crediters' action.

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This was a rapid victory, following a surprise attack against the mounting charges preying on private property.

Of course, as long as the present financial system is allowed to impose its policy, both the municipal and provincial administrations will look for other veins to tap, in order to extract from the people the money they cannot get from the property owners.

It is the whole machinery of taxation which must be challenged, and Social Crediters will keep at it. They know that curtailment of the individual's purchasing power is unnecessary; when the productive power of the community is quite able to supply the goods and services answering the public demand as well as the private demand.