Stop the Madness
Stop the Property Tax Hike
Stop the Tax Hike is a community-focused campaign powered by neighbours, families, small businesses, and renters standing together to stop the madness at City Hall.
The Halifax Regional Municipality’s proposed 10.9% property tax hike – on top of rising water and power rates—is a breaking point. For too long, we’ve been asked to pay more while City Hall lives outside its means. Currently, this increase is a staff recommendation, but our Mayor and Council have the power to change it. We need to cut spending now.
Taxes cannot keep going up when the people paying them are already struggling to make ends meet. It’s time for those elected to City Hall to stop being disconnected and start realizing what residents and businesses are feeling on the ground.
Your voice matters. There is still time to force change. Join the campaign to help stop the property tax hike today and put an end to the madness at City Hall.
What’s at Stake for Halifax
The 5-Year Warning: This isn't a one-time increase. The draft budget presented by city staff recommends a tax increase of approximately 10.9% each year for the next five years just to maintain current spending levels. We must stop this trajectory now.
The Ripple Effect on Renters: Property tax is a primary cost for housing providers. These hikes put immediate upward pressure on rents in an already tight market, making it harder for tenants to stay in the communities they love.
Small and Local Businesses: Commercial taxes are already punishing. Another double-digit increase threatens the thin margins of our local shops and restaurants, jeopardizing the jobs our neighbourhoods depend on.
Disconnected Priorities: While families cut back on essentials, City Hall continues to say "yes" to everything—from expensive bike lanes and new ferries to $110 million rink renovations that cost more than building new. We need a return on investment, not a blank cheque.
Halifax Needs Transparency and Solutions; Not More Hikes
This campaign is about demanding that City Hall adopts an "Affordability Lens." While we support our city, we cannot ignore an operating budget that has grown 53% over the last decade, far outpacing inflation.
We are calling on Council to:
Reduce Spending: Take a hard look at every project. We can’t keep saying "yes" to more staff and "nice-to-have" infrastructure while residents struggle.
Live Within Your Means: If Halifax families and businesses have to balance their budgets, City Hall must do the same.
Hiring Freeze: Review the city’s headcount and find operational efficiencies to reduce rising administrative costs.
Fiscal Accountability: Stop the cycle of "unavoidable" hikes by requiring City Hall to live within its means, just as Halifax families and businesses do every day.
A better way forward ensures that residents are not left to fund "nice-to-have" projects while they struggle to pay their own bills.
Your voice helped stop the water hikes from being worse... Now it’s time to stand up again and stop the madness at City Hall.
Sign up for our campaign and use our email tool to contact the Mayor and your City Councillor. Tell them to stop the disconnected spending and realize that a 10.9% hike is unaffordable and unacceptable.
