$20M in taxes overcharged by the City of Montréal - Judge allows Beaconsfield to question the Minister of Municipal Affairs and deputy ministers

BEACONSFIELD, QC, April 7, 2025 /CNW/ - The City of Beaconsfield has obtained permission from the Québec Superior Court to question the Minister of Municipal Affairs, Andrée Laforest, as well as former Minister Nathalie Normandeau, deputy ministers and assistant deputy ministers of the Government of Québec, as part of its lawsuit for over $20 million in taxes overcharged by the City of Montréal.

Judge Éric Dufour's decision last Friday overturns the claims of the Government of Québec and the City of Montréal, which had refused to allow Beaconsfield's solicitors to question under oath the current minister, the former minister and radio host, current and former senior civil servants, and three elected officials, including Peter Trent, former mayor of Westmount and leader of the municipal demerger movement in the 2000s.

Beaconsfield Mayor Georges Bourelle is pleased with the court's decision, which will provide answers to the many questions the Government has refused to answer. "Public funds must be managed transparently, predictably and fairly. This is the basis of our entire approach, for the sake of justice for our citizens who are being penalized by these repeated errors," states Mr. Bourelle.

The unfair surcharge was imposed following a decision by the current Minister of Municipal Affairs, Andrée Laforest, who wrongly contravened the 2008 agreement between the Government of Québec, the City of Montréal, and the 15 other municipalities on the island on the equitable sharing of the cost of regional services (police, fire protection, public transit, water, etc.) as part of the demerger of those 15 municipalities from the metropolis.

This agreement was drawn up over a long period of time and with great care by senior civil servants and members at the National Assembly following the municipal demergers, with the intention of ensuring fairness in each city's contribution to regional services. To this end, it provides for an adjustment of the equalization formula each time the new three-year property assessment roll for the Island of Montréal is submitted. This adjustment is crucial and essential to maintain the equity of each city's contribution to these regional services, with the exception of the growth of the real estate stock.

In 2017, a temporary three-year agreement was reached between the government, Montréal, and the 15 reconstituted municipalities to resolve a specific problem. However, in 2019 and then on three subsequent occasions, the minister in question failed to uphold her obligation under the 2008 agreement. Instead, she renewed the cities' contributions on the basis of the temporary agreement, rather than respecting the parameters of the original 2008 agreement. As a result, the contributions of the demerged cities are unbalanced in favour of Montréal.

In 2019, despite numerous political and administrative representations by Beaconsfield's elected officials and administrators, Minister Laforest adopted the first faulty ministerial order. She renewed it twice, in 2021 and 2022, ignoring Beaconsfield's new attempts at representation and even mediation.

In 2020, at the time of the first injustice related to the application of the incorrect calculation, the amount claimed for over-collected taxes amounted to $2 million. Since then, it has increased every year because of the repetition of the same miscalculation. After six years, Beaconsfield's claim on behalf of its citizens now exceeds $20 million.

SOURCE City of Beaconsfield

Information: Mayor's Office, [email protected], beaconsfield.ca