CALGARY – City council has decided to hold off on a decision regarding a tax rebate for small to medium businesses.
Ward 8 Councillor Evan Woolley issued a notice of motion Monday morning to request $60-million from the Fiscal Stability Reserve, often referred to as the city’s ‘rainy-day fund’.
Woolley had initiated the discussion to help sustain businesses for the next two years as they navigate the downturn in the Alberta economy.
The reaction in council was that lawmakers need to be careful about using that money, and also raised questions of whether the proposed average amount of $1,200 per business would offer a significant enough benefit.
One Calgary business owner has told Global News that every cent helps. Jackie Tyler is the owner of a catering company in downtown Calgary and said that many businesses are in survival mode right now. Tyler cited her own company’s experience as an example, pointing out the negative effects of rising food costs impacted by the low Canadian dollar and a drop in business due to energy companies not catering as much during the downturn.
There is a report coming out next week for the Priorities and Finance committee, that focuses on how to help businesses during this difficult time and council decided to table this discussion to coincide with that meeting.
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