Beaconsfield vows to continue legal battle over agglo payments

“The courts are now our only way to get redress and justice,” says Beaconsfield Mayor Georges Bourelle.

Author of the article:

John meagher • Montreal Gazette

The City of Beaconsfield has initiated legal action over its Montreal agglomeration payments. Photo by John Mahoney /The Gazette

Despite a Quebec government decree in favor of the Montreal Council of Agglomeration, the city of Beaconsfield says it will continue to seek legal means to correct what it considers excessive taxation by the Montreal agglo.

The decree obliges separate cities to pay 18 percent of the Montreal Agglomeration’s services budget, even though they represent about 12 percent of the population.

Beaconsfield called agglo’s payment formula “unfair.” The West Island suburb has argued that the algorithm formula used to calculate global taxes is flawed and that separate cities are being asked to shoulder an unfair burden from the agglomeration budget.

“This needs to be corrected,” said Beaconsfield Mayor Georges Bourelle. “It is inconceivable to pay more taxes without receiving additional services, due to a distorted algorithm that results in an uneven distribution of the costs of public services.

“This new ministerial order demonstrates the importance of our legal procedures to force the government to respect the 2008 agreement for a fair share of the costs of agglomeration. The courts are now our only way to obtain compensation and justice, ”he added.

“This decision further justifies the $ 4 million lawsuit, to be increased to $ 6 million in January, filed by the City of Beaconsfield with the intention of recovering overpaid taxes for regional services overcharged by the Agglomeration of Montreal, “the city said in a statement.

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