The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
A Flin Flon woman asked city council Tuesday to help her secure the Manitoba tax rebate she missed this year because the province wrongly assumed she was no longer a permanent resident. Rose-Marie Ariko told council she hasn't received the $400 property tax credit for which she was eligible because her utility bills were put under her housesitter's name while she spent some time out of town. The name on utility bills as of Jan. 1 of each year often determines Manitoba residency, so Ariko was disqualified for the rebate that goes only to permanent citizens. "That's why I'm here," she told council. "I don't think that's right." Mayor Dennis Ballard agreed that "something's wrong" with Ariko's situation but made it clear that "this is a government action, not a City action." Nevertheless, he said council wants to look at the problems with the current system, adding this was not the first time this complaint has surfaced. Each year, the province forwards to Flin Flon City Hall a lengthy list of residents to determine which ones remain eligible for the tax credit of up to $400. The City, going by the names on utility bills as well as land title changes, then identifies people no longer believed to be permanent residents. "We simply follow their [provincial] guidelines," municipal administrator Larry Fancy assured Ariko. "We don't try to play the spy." To avoid problems in the future, Fancy suggested she pay the bills under her own name. As for the woman's $400 tax credit, Fancy said yesterday that the province has been informed of the situation and will reimburse the money upon Ariko's completion of a form.
