Canadian cities are failing small businesses, CFIB report card finds

CFIB's first-ever Municipal Report Card shows most cities need to do much more to create conditions where small businesses can thrive

TORONTO, Sept. 15, 2026 /CNW/ -- More than half of Canadian municipalities – 39 of the 66 assessed - are failing to create the conditions small businesses need to succeed, finds the Canadian Federation of Independent Business's (CFIB) first-ever Open for Business: Canada's 2026 Municipal Report Card. The report card uses data collected up to December 31, 2025, across 11 indicators measuring cost burden, regulatory burden and small business friendliness.

More than half of Canadian municipalities – 39 of the 66 assessed - are failing to create the conditions small businesses need to succeed, finds the Canadian Federation of Independent Business’s (CFIB) first-ever Open for Business: Canada's 2026 Municipal Report Card. The report card uses data collected up to December 31, 2025, across 11 indicators measuring cost burden, regulatory burden and small business friendliness.

Over half (39) of municipalities received an F, 18 received a D, five earned a C-, and three received a C. The most competitive municipality for attracting and supporting business growth is Red Deer (AB), earning a C+. Saskatoon (SK) came in second place followed by Strathcona County (AB) in third place, both earning a C. Rounding out the list are Coquitlam (BC), Saguenay (QC), and Mission (BC), each scoring an F grade.

"Sixty-six cities, and not one of them earned more than a C+. Most received an F. Municipalities have more day-to-day impact on a small business than any other level of government, and right now they're just not prioritizing small business policy in a way that sets local businesses up for success," said Vincent Pâquet, CFIB Senior Policy Analyst. "It's no wonder that just 22% of our members believe their city is looking out for them. Municipalities need to act, especially as we face ongoing tariff threats and economic uncertainty."

Municipalities that ranked higher typically combined some elements of fairer commercial property taxation, targeted property tax relief, simpler permitting, digital licensing, published permit timelines, stronger construction mitigation policies and business-friendly online services.

"The good news is that municipalities don't need to invest in large spending commitments to improve their business landscape. Fairer property taxes, construction mitigation policy toolkits, identifying duplicative permits and licences, and even using cost-friendly online tools like a red tape feedback portal, are all tangible actions that every municipality in the country could adopt," said Angela Drennan, CFIB Vice-President of Ontario Legislative Affairs. "The fixes are there. There's no excuse to maintain a failing grade."

CFIB is calling on municipalities across Canada to:

• Focus on improving the tax landscape by addressing property tax unfairness, offering tax relief for small businesses and keeping municipal spending in line with population growth and inflation.
• Cut red tape by conducting a count to identify and get rid of duplicative permits and licenses.
• Publicly post clear service standards and permit timelines so businesses know what to expect.
• Create an easy-to-use online portal where business owners can flag unnecessary rules that take them away from doing business.
• Create an attractive business landscape by compensating businesses affected by long construction projects. Alternatively, have municipalities be responsible for implementing robust construction mitigation policies.
• Adopt dedicated small business procurement portals to enable small business to better identify and compete for contracts.

CFIB plans to publish future iterations of the Municipal Report Card to benchmark municipal performance, recognize leading practices and track progress in creating more competitive environments for small businesses.

About CFIB

The Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) is Canada's largest association of small and medium-sized businesses with 103,000 members across every industry and region. CFIB is dedicated to increasing business owners' chances of success by driving policy change at all levels of government, providing expert advice and tools, and negotiating exclusive savings. Learn more at cfib.ca.

SOURCE Canadian Federation of Independent Business (Toronto)

For media enquiries or interviews, please contact: Marty Thompson, CFIB, 647-464-2814, [email protected]