Alberta's Municipal Affairs Minister, Kaycee Madu has tabled legislation he says will empower municipalities to offer property tax incentives to business owners for machinery and equipment.

The amendments he's tabeled were to Bill 7, or the Municipal Government (Property Tax Incentives) Amendment Act.

Originally the bill was passed back in June and allows communities to offer property tax incentives to non-residential properties for up to 15 years.

Madu says the addition of machinery and equipment incentives were in response to feedback they heard when the original legislation was passed.

“Our government passed Bill 7 this past summer, as part of our ongoing effort to revitalize municipalities across Alberta. Business and industry stakeholders have been clear that while this was a good move, expanding these tax incentives to include machinery and equipment would be even better. We have listened and introduced this legislation to spur more investment in our communities.”

CEO of the Alberta Chambers of Commerce, Ken Kobly says the amendment should spur investment in communities across Alberta.

“Flexibility to offer machinery and equipment tax incentives will help communities attract investment and support local job creation. Municipalities are key provincial partners in fostering a competitive business environment. This amendment to the MGA combined with Bill 7 sends a strong signal Alberta is open for business.”

More information about the amendments can be found online.

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