The Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC) administers property assessments and appeals of assessment in the

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''Roman province, provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, Canada. MPAC determines the assessed value for all properties across Ontario. This is provided in the form of an Assessment Roll, which is delivered to

municipalities A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

throughout the province on the second Tuesday in December. Municipalities then take the assessment roll, and calculate

property taxes A property tax or millage rate is an ad valorem tax on the value of a property.In the OECD classification scheme, tax on property includes "taxes on immovable property or net wealth, taxes on the change of ownership of property through inheri ...

for each individual property in their jurisdiction. MPAC complains that taxpayers often confuse MPAC's role as an assessment agency for taxes; MPAC responds that it only provides assessments. Municipalities set the

tax rates In a tax system, the tax rate is the ratio (usually expressed as a percentage) at which a business or person is taxed. There are several methods used to present a tax rate: statutory, average, marginal, and effective. These rates can also be p ...

and distribute the tax burden based on the assessed values provided by MPAC. The head office is located in

Pickering, Ontario Pickering (2021 population 99,186) is a city located in Southern Ontario, Canada, immediately east of Toronto in Durham Region. Beginning in the 1770s, the area was settled by primarily ethnic British colonists. An increase in population occurre ...

. MPAC, formerly known as OPAC (Ontario Property Assessment Corporation), was created on December 31, 1997, as a method to create accurate and equitable assessments across Ontario. MPAC came into existence with the
MPAC Act
', and it administers the

', both part of Ontario provincial

legislation Legislation is the process or result of enrolled bill, enrolling, enactment of a bill, enacting, or promulgation, promulgating laws by a legislature, parliament, or analogous Government, governing body. Before an item of legislation becomes law i ...

. On December 31, 1998, the

Government of Ontario The government of Ontario (french: Gouvernement de l'Ontario) is the body responsible for the administration of the Canadian province of Ontario. A constitutional monarchy, the Crown—represented in the province by the lieutenant governor� ...

transferred responsibility for property assessment from the Ministry of Finance to the Ontario Property Assessment Corporation, an independent body established by the ''Ontario Property Assessment Corporation Act, 1997''. Prior to the creation of MPAC, municipalities in Ontario had discretion on how they chose to assess properties. This created inequity across the province, as similar properties across the province had separate values. In 2008, MPAC sent out approximately 4.7 million property assessment notices, advising properties of their assessment value. The current values are based on a January 1, 2008, valuation date.

MPAC history

Pre-1970

Although property assessment originally came under the jurisdiction of Upper Canada, it was transferred to Ontario municipalities in 1849. Over time, each municipality developed its own assessment system and methods of valuing property. This resulted in inconsistencies in property assessment and the distribution of property taxes. Within a municipality, properties with a similar appearance and value could have very different assessments. There were also very different assessments from municipality to municipality. In 1963, the Provincial Government appointed the Ontario Committee on Taxation to study taxation and recommend changes. Its report, published in 1967, highlighted many inequities in the assessment system.

1970-1997 – Market value assessment introduced

In response to The Ontario Committee on Taxation Report, the Provincial Government assumed responsibility for property assessment in 1970 to create a uniform assessment system for all Ontario municipalities. The Government introduced market value assessment and the new system was offered to municipal governments on a voluntary basis. Since the new system was voluntary, not all municipalities implemented market value assessment. As a result, property assessments differed from municipality to municipality. This situation was addressed by the Province with the introduction of the Fair Municipal Finance Act, 1997. With this Act substantial amendments to the Assessment Act, the Municipal Act and other related legislation were implemented, setting the stage for reshaping Ontario's assessment and property tax system in 1998.

Post-1997 – Ontario Fair Assessment System

Under the "Ontario Fair Assessment System", property assessments across the province were updated to their current value, using a common valuation date. In addition, on December 31, 1998, responsibility for property assessment was transferred by the government of the Hon. Mr. Mike Harris to a new, not-for-profit corporation called the Ontario Property Assessment Corporation, later renamed the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC). Every municipality in Ontario is a member of MPAC, which is governed by a board of directors composed of taxpayer, municipal, and provincial representatives.

Controversy

Persons living in areas where other houses increase in value, such as by replacement with newer and larger houses, often blame MPAC for increases in their taxes. MPAC disclaims responsibility, arguing that the property owners should blame the municipality. The municipalities, in turn, blame MPAC and its organizing legislation. The debate is ongoing.

References

External links

Municipal Property Assessment CorporationAbout MPAC
{{ONGovDept Organizations based in Ontario Crown corporations of Ontario Canadian taxation government bodies Property taxes Local taxation in Canada Pickering, Ontario