Halifax, October 20, 2026 – As municipalities across Atlantic Canada begin preparing their 2027 budgets, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) is launching a petition calling on mayors and councils to stop taxing business properties at higher rates than residential.
The petition builds on CFIB's Atlantic Canada Commercial Property Tax Report, released in September, which examined 80 municipalities across the four Atlantic provinces. In all but four of those 80 municipalities, businesses are taxed at a higher rate than homes worth the same value.
“Same property value, but a much bigger tax bill. That’s the reality for small businesses across Nova Scotia,” said Louis-Philippe Gauthier, CFIB’s Atlantic Vice-president. “This petition lets owners tell their council directly: it’s time to tax us fairly.”
The burden falls hardest on the smallest firms. Among businesses with fewer than five employees, 31% say property tax accounts for more than 10% of their operating costs, and 40% say it has had a significant negative impact on profitability. Among businesses hurt by property taxes, 21% have delayed or cancelled an investment and 18% have cut staff or hours.
Small business owners also feel unheard. Nearly three in four (73%) Atlantic small business owners disagree that their municipality understands how property taxes affect their business.
“Property tax arrives in full whether a business had a good year or a bad one,” said Gauthier. “Councils don't have to collect less to fix this. They just need to share the load fairly, and commit to a clear, five-year path to equal rates.”
CFIB is calling on municipalities to:
• Adopt a five-year plan to reduce and ultimately eliminate higher tax rates on commercial property.
• Publicly report how the property-tax burden is shared between property classes.
CFIB is also calling on the Nova Scotia government to ensure their own property-tax legislation treat all property classes equally.
Small business owners can add their voice by signing the petition at https://cfib.ca/petitions.
For media enquiries or interviews, please contact:
Louis-Philippe Gauthier
CFIB Vice-President, Atlantic
506-961-5706
Louis-Philippe.Gauthier@cfib.ca
About CFIB
The Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) is Canada's largest association of small and medium-sized businesses, with 103,000 members across every industry and region. In Nova Scotia alone, CFIB represents more than 4,200 members. CFIB advocates for policy change at all levels of government, provides expert advice and tools, and negotiates exclusive savings to help business owners succeed. Learn more at cfib.ca.