Hamilton is going to begin charging stormwater fees, also called a rain tax, on April 1, 2026. Pictured: Donna Skelly. Photo Credit: Donna Skelly/X.
Donna Skelly, who has served as the Member of Provincial Parliament for Flamborough-Glanbrook since 2018, has vowed to prohibit municipalities from charging stormwater fees on agricultural land through a motion in the upcoming sitting of the Ontario Legislature.
The City of Hamilton is going to begin charging stormwater fees, also called a rain tax, on April 1, 2026.
Residents and businesses will be charged by the city based on the area of impervious surfaces, such as concrete or buildings, on the property.
The fees are meant to cover costs that the city incurs to upkeep stormwater collection systems including sewers and ditches.
While residential properties will see charges in the hundreds of dollars, Skelly says that the costs for agricultural properties “could exceed tens of thousands annually.”
Indeed, she says that one person in her riding with an agricultural property was given an estimate that they would be taxed upwards of $85,000 a year in stormwater fees.
Skelly went so far as to call the tax “one of the most egregious taxes imposed by the City of Hamilton.”
And while the City of Hamilton is considering credits that would help to bring down those fees for agricultural properties, Skelly says that farmers believe that the city should not be imposing any fees on them in the first place.
Additionally, there are no standards within Ontario as a whole, so in some municipalities agricultural lands are exempt from stormwater fees, while in others the lands are not exempt, which she says causes “inconsistency.”
It should also be noted that some municipalities have not introduced a rain tax at all.
On Dec. 13, 2024, Skelly issued a press release saying she had introduced a motion at the Ontario Legislature to prohibit municipalities across the entire province from charging stormwater fees on agricultural lands.
At the time she said, “Charging our agricultural properties a stormwater fee for services they don’t use is unfair and outrageous. This so-called rain tax will take thousands of dollars out of the pockets of hardworking farmers who are already facing complex challenges.”
“My motion is intended to reduce an unjustifiable burden on agricultural properties in Ontario and make life more affordable for people and businesses who contribute significantly to our local economy.”
It was expected that the motion would be voted on in the February 2025 sitting of the Legislature, but then Premier Doug Ford called a snap election and the next parliamentary session was pushed back to March.
The delay has not changed Skelly’s plans to fight for an agricultural exemption.
At the all-candidates debate hosted by Cable 14 in advance of the provincial election, Skelly said that her motion received support from the Minister of Agriculture, the Minister of Rural Affairs, the Minister of Housing, and even the NDP.
The motion is also supported by the Ontario Federation of Agriculture, the Ontario Greenhouse Alliance, and the Ontario Harness Horse Association.
Based in Hamilton, he reaches hundreds of thousands of people monthly on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter. He has been published in The Hamilton Spectator, Stoney Creek News, and Bay Observer. He has also been a segment host with Cable 14 Hamilton. In 2017, he received the Chancellor Full Tuition Scholarship from the University of Ottawa (BA, 2022). He has also received the Governor General’s Academic Medal. He formerly worked in a non-partisan role on Parliament Hill in Ottawa.
