A Whitby town councillor is urging the Ontario government to take full responsibility for collecting education taxes, arguing that municipalities should no longer be involved if elected school board trustees are eliminated.
Councillor Chris Leahy is bringing a motion to Whitby’s Committee of the Whole meeting on Monday, calling on the province to remove the education portion of property taxes from municipal tax bills across Ontario. The request is conditional on Education Minister Paul Calandra proceeding with changes that would eliminate elected school board trustees.
Leahy argues that the long-standing constitutional principle of “no taxation without representation” would be undermined if trustees are no longer elected through municipal elections. He believes that if school boards move to a provincially administered governance and funding model, the province should also assume full responsibility for funding, collecting, and administering education costs.
In his motion, Leahy notes that municipalities have no control over education tax rates, spending priorities, or governance, despite education being under the province’s exclusive constitutional authority, including curriculum and funding formulas.
In Whitby, the education portion currently accounts for approximately 11 per cent of a property owner’s total tax bill, even though the town is only responsible for collecting the tax on behalf of the province.
The Ontario government has already expanded its oversight of school boards through Bill 33, appointing supervisors to boards facing financial and governance challenges. Boards affected include Toronto’s public and Catholic school boards, Dufferin-Peel Catholic School Board, Near North District School Board, and boards in Ottawa-Carleton and Thames Valley.
The province says the intervention is intended to restore financial stability, centralize parent concerns, and improve efficiency. Critics, however, argue that the measures weaken local democratic representation and fail to address broader issues related to education funding.
A provincial decision on the future of elected school board trustees is expected in early 2026.
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