Taxation
County
Understanding Your Property Tax
Your property tax is made up of four components: municipal tax, education tax, senior housing tax, and designated industrial property (DIP) tax. Flagstaff County is responsible for collecting these taxes. The Assessment and Tax notice you receive annually in June includes all four components.
County Taxes
Municipal Tax is the portion of the property tax allocated to the County for providing operating programs and services, capital projects and reserves. County Council has authority to set the municipal tax rate. Municipal Tax also includes the Flagstaff Family & Community Services (FFCS) Funding Agreement, Flagstaff Waste Management Agreement, Recreation Funding, Flagstaff Regional Emergency Services Society (FRESS) Agreement, and Provincial Police Funding.
Education Tax is a requisition that all municipalities are mandated to collect on behalf of Alberta Education. This tax is directly remitted to the Province, and the County has no influence or control over setting the education tax rate.
Seniors Housing Tax is a requisition by the Flagstaff Regional Housing Group (FRHG). This requisition is for the funding of seniors housing as operated by FRHG. County Council has representation on the board and this board establishes the budget and the associated requisition. This tax is remitted directly to FRHG.
Designated Industrial Property (DIP) Tax is a requisition by the Municipal Assessment and Grants Division, Assessment Services Branch for Municipal Affairs. Municipal Affairs now has a Centralized Industrial Property Assessment unit that is responsible for all assessment for Designated Industrial Property. The cost of this centralized assessment is recovered through the DIP requisition.
How Your Municipal Tax Dollars Are Spent
The chart shows how the municipal tax dollars raised in 2024 will be spent by department. The percentages include projects and services for operating and capital budgets. Corporate Services are considered support for the programs and services provided by the following departments; therefore, the costs are distributed between departments.
Designated Industrial Property includes all:
- Linear (wells, pipelines, railway, telecommunications and electric power systems)
- Facilities regulated by Alberta Energy Regulator (AER), Canadian Energy Regulator (CER), Alberta Utilities Commission.
- Property designated as ‘Major Plants’ (refineries, upgraders, pulp/paper mills)
- Land and improvements associated with AER, CER, and Alberta Utilities Commission.
2025 Tax & Assessment Notices
Seniors Property Tax Deferral Program
This voluntary program will allow seniors to defer their residential property taxes through a low-interest home equity loan with the Alberta Government. For more information, click the following box.
Calculating Property Taxes
Property taxes are calculated by multiplying the assessment by the appropriate tax rate. Tax rates are calculated based on the amount of tax revenue that is required to pay for the services that are provided. Revenues are collected through property taxation for Municipal Operations, Alberta School Foundation, Flagstaff Foundation, and Designated Industrial Property.
2024 Property Tax Calculator
Click HERE for the Flagstaff County 2024 Property Tax Calculator.
2025 MILL RATES (rates updated each spring)
Requisitioning Bodies | Municipal Mill Rate | School Foundation Program Fund (S.F.P.F.) |
Tax Classification | ||
Residential | 4.7521 | 2.7261 |
Residential (Urban) | 4.5090 | 2.7261 |
Farm | 18.6727 | 2.7261 |
Non-Residential | 17.1880 | 3.9415 |
Linear | 17.1880 | 3.9415 |
Machinery & Equipment | 17.1880 | 0.0000 |
Requisitioning Bodies | Flagstaff Foundation | Designated Industrial Property | Total Mill Rate |
Tax Classification | |||
Residential | 0.1717 | 0.0000 | 7.6446 |
Residential (Urban) | 0.1717 | 0.0000 | 7.4015 |
Farm | 0.1717 | 0.0000 | 21.5652 |
Non-Residential | 0.1717 | 0.0701 | 21.3660 |
Linear | 0.1717 | 0.0701 | 21.3660 |
Machinery & Equipment | 0.1717 | 0.0701 | 17.4245 |
Tax Calculation
(Assessment X Tax Rate) divided by 1000 = Taxes
An estimation of taxes can also be figured out using the above formula. Use the current market value of the property you are trying to estimate the taxes for, by replacing the assessed value with the market value. Note that it would only be an estimate/rough approximation, as mill rates and market values are changed yearly.
Terms of Payment
- Cheque – Cheques should be made payable to:
- Flagstaff County
- Box 358
- Sedgewick, AB T0B 4C0
- Please note that remittances from outside Canada must be in Canadian Funds.
- Debit Payment at the County Office
- Option Pay (Note: Option Pay allows you to pay with credit card only. There is a fee based on the amount paid. Please ensure that comment section includes account number when making payment to ensure that we are able to process payment correctly.)
- Online payments – Vision Credit Union, ATB Financial, BMO – Bank of Montreal. Please note that banks require the account # to be six digits, so please add zeros to the beginning of the account # to make it six digits.
- E-Transfer – county@flagstaff.ab.ca
- Tax Installment Payment Plan (TIPP): Flagstaff County offers a pre-authorized payment plan that allows property owners to pay their property taxes to the County in monthly installments from January to December each year. The deadline for enrollment is June each year. Payments are automatically withdrawn from your bank account on the first business day of each month. Your most recent annual tax levy is divided by 12 to establish a monthly payment amount. Payment amounts will be adjusted in June to compensate for changes in taxes resulting from the annual tax levy. Payments begin January 1st of the new year and continue for 12 consecutive months. You may withdraw from the plan by giving notice in writing before the 15th of the month preceding the next payment date. If your property is sold, title transferred or you have a change in bank account information, it is the responsibility of the participant to inform the Tax Department in writing. We require the notice of change before the 15th of the month prior to the next withdrawal. To enroll, click HERE.
Tax Penalties
A penalty of 12% (twelve percent) will be levied on unpaid taxes after the October deadline and an additional 6% (six percent) will be levied on all tax arrears in May of the following year.
Contacts
Debra Brodie
Corporate Services Director
Lisa Bonnett
Tax/Utilities Clerk