POLICY REPORT
FINANCE

Date: June 3, 2002
Author/Local: C. Kinahan/7513

RTS No. 02-774

CC File No. 1552/114

Council: June 11, 2002

TO:	Vancouver City Council
FROM:	City Manager
SUBJECT:	B. C. Cancer Agency Branch: Tax Exemption

CONSIDERATION

THAT the Director of Legal Services apply to the Province for an amendment to the Vancouver Charter to ensure that property owned by the British Columbia Cancer Foundation, having a legal description of Parcel Identifier 025-141-015 Lot A Block 359 District Lot 526 Group 1 New Westminster District Plan LMP 51308, be exempt from property taxes, the exemption to be limited to that portion of the property actually occupied by the British Columbia Cancer Agency Branch and wholly used for the charitable purposes of the British Columbia Cancer Agency Branch.

COMMENTS

The City Manager submits this report for Council's consideration.

POLICY

There is no applicable Council policy.

PURPOSE

The purpose of this report is to seek Council approval for a proposed amendment to the Vancouver Charter which would ensure that the B.C. Cancer Research Centre, presently being constructed in Vancouver, is exempt from property taxes.

BACKGROUND

The Vancouver Charter presently provides in Section 396 (1)(c)(i) for an exemption from property taxes for properties owned and actually occupied by a charitable institution. The exception does not apply to charitable institutions which are not the owners of the property they occupy.

The B.C. Cancer Research Centre is presently being constructed in Vancouver, on lands owned by the British Columbia Cancer Foundation, a charitable institution. In order to obtain funding from the provincial government, a new society called the British Columbia Cancer Agency Branch has been incorporated, and will occupy the research centre pursuant to a lease with the British Columbia Cancer Foundation. Although the new society will actually occupy the property and carry out the charitable objects of cancer research, it will not qualify for charitable exemption under the general exemption provisions of the Vancouver Charter because it is not the registered owner of the property.

In order to provide a charitable exemption to the B.C. Cancer Research Centre, it would be necessary to amend the Vancouver Charter to grant a specific exemption to lands actually occupied by the British Columbia Cancer Agency Branch and wholly in use for the charitable purposes of the new society.

In 1987, Council was faced with a similar issue in regards to the downtown Vancouver campus of Simon Fraser University ("SFU"), which occupies leased lands. Because SFU was not the owner of the lands it occupied, it did not qualify for an exemption from property taxes pursuant to the University Act. At that time, Council approved a very specific amendment to the Vancouver Charter granting an exemption to SFU as the occupier of the site, limited to the portion of the real property actually occupied by SFU (section 396(1)(c)(vi)). It is proposed that a similar very specific amendment be made to the Vancouver Charter, in order to avoid setting a general precedent of allowing leased lands to

be exempt from taxation. The indication from Provincial officials is that the Province would
support such a legislative amendment, to be enacted at the fall session of the legislature.

The City Manager notes that both the Director of Finance and Director of Legal Services have expressed concern about the Charter amendment proposed in this report, just as they did in the case of the previous amendment dealing with Simon Fraser University. Compared to legislation governing other municipalities in BC, the Vancouver Charter provides more liberal access to property taxation exemptions for non profit organizations and, as a result, the City carries a disproportionate share of the cost of these exemptions in the region. Each time specific exclusions from these provisions are written into the legislation there is a concern that precedent is being set that will invite other non-profit organizations to apply to Council or the Province for similar treatment. As a result, City taxpayers could come under considerably more pressure to support non-profits organizations through tax exemptions.

While the City Manager recognizes that this exemption will simply extend the current situation for the BC Cancer Agency, this must be balanced with the need to maintain the integrity of the property tax provision of the Charter. As a result, the City Manager submits the above for CONSIDERATION.

* * * * *

(c) 1998 City of Vancouver