Tribunal ruling means Wellington County pit operators owe millions in back taxes

Gravel pits in southern Wellington County owe millions in backdated property taxes after an Ontario court ruled they were assessed too low by the Municipal Property Assessment Corp. (MPAC).

An interim decision from the Tribunals Ontario Assessment Review Board dated March 29 ruled six aggregate operations in Puslinch and Erin need to be reassessed for the 2017 to 2020 taxation years.

The six pits named in this ruling are: the Dufferin Pit, Capital Pit and Roszell Pits Nos. One and Two in Puslinch and the Hillsburgh/Huxley Pit in Erin.

The ruling states MPAC previously reached an agreement with the Ontario Stone, Sand and Gravel Association to set the value of land gravel pits operated on at the class 5 farmland rate to resolve outstanding appeals.

However, the county argued this classification was not applied correctly in accordance with regulations and failed to recognize these properties are host to industrial operations.

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