Council will approve a Tax Levy ByLaw on Tuesday

By Gazette Staff

April 20^th, 2026

BURLINGTON, ON

To make this long story short:

The 2026 Tax Levy By-law reflects the culmination of the budget process at both the City and the Region of Halton.

The overall combined 2026 urban residential taxes, for Burlington residents increased by $43.70 or 4.50% per $100,000 of current value assessment (CVA).

All property taxes must be billed within the calendar year. Property taxes are billed twice a year, referred to as interim and final taxes.

Final Tax bills will be sent out in May with the due dates for the payment of final property taxes due June 23rd, 2026, and September 23rd, 2026.

That’s all you really need to know.  If you don’t like the rate at which taxes have increased, you get to vote Council out of Office on October 246th.

The rest is all about the process:

School Board offices for the Region

This report presents an overview of the 2026 property tax rates for the City, Region, and school boards as required by legislation. The tax rates for the City and Region are based on the 2026 budget requirements, while the tax rates for education are provided by the Province.

Through the Municipal Act, the municipality shall annually levy the amount required for the purposes of the City, Region of Halton, and respective school boards.

Purpose of report:

The 2026 final tax rates are submitted to Council for approval in the form of the 2026 Tax Levy By-law

Key findings:

The tax rates for the City and the Region are based on the 2026 approved budget requirements, while the tax rates for school purposes are provided by the Province.

The Municipal Act, 2001 requires the lower tier municipality to issue and collect property taxes on behalf of the upper tier and school boards.

Implications:

The 2026 Tax Levy By-law, once approved, will provide the authority to levy and issue final property tax bills to all property owners in the City of Burlington.

Background

On December 2, 2025, at a Special Council meeting, Mayor and Council approved the 2026 Operating Budget for the City, resulting in a net tax levy of $280,849,396.

On March 10, 2026, Council approved the budgets for the Burlington Downtown Business Improvement Area and the Aldershot Business Improvement Area (BIAs).

Council has approved the Downtown Parking area tax levy which results in the calculated special 2026 tax rates based on the assessed values.

Region of Halton Crest

The Region of Halton tax rates and related tax policy are approved on April 15, 2026, prior to the City Council meeting.

On December 5, 2025, the Province published and provided municipalities with the 2026 education tax rates by filing Ontario Regulation 297/25 amending O.Reg. 400/98.

The 2026 Final Tax Rates are submitted to Council for approval in the form of the 2026 Tax Levy By-Law.

Analysis

In accordance with the Municipal Act, 2001, tax policies are set at the regional level for all local municipalities. The Region of Halton Council approval of tax policies for 2026 is scheduled for April 15th. Details of the 2026 Tax Policy can be found in the Region of Halton’s Finance Report (FN-08-26).

The overall combined 2026 urban residential taxes, for Burlington residents, increased by $43.70 or 4.50% per $100,000 of CVA. Rural residential property taxes will increase by $40.38 or 4.46% per $100,000 of CVA.

Recommendation Details

Approval of the 2026 Tax Levy By-law (FIN-01-26) for the levying of tax rates.