FREDERICTON, N.B. – Fairness, predictability, and oversight is what local leaders representing 60 municipalities across New Brunswick voted to adopt through key resolutions at the Union of Municipalities of New Brunswick (UMNB) Annual General Meeting. Establishing a firm mandate for funding that meets municipal responsibilities.
UMNB’s membership adopted Resolution U-26-05, calling on the Province of New Brunswick to direct 100% of federal Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) directly to the municipalities where federal properties reside. This resolution targets long-standing structural disparities in how federal and provincial properties are treated under New Brunswick’s current tax system.
Currently, New Brunswick splits PILT funds between taxing authorities such as the Province, host municipalities, and some First Nations – despite local governments bearing the direct operational costs of providing municipal infrastructure and services to federal facilities.
| Federal PILT* | Revenue – 2025 Tax Year | Percentage |
| Province of New Brunswick | $ 31,071,382.09. | 99.5% |
| Municipal and First Nation | $ 155,605.75 | 0.5% |
| Total | $ 31,226,987.84 | 100% |
“Municipalities are responsible for delivering the services and infrastructure that keep our communities running, and our members have been clear that the way municipalities are funded needs to reflect those responsibilities,” said Brittany Merrifield, President of UMNB. “Increasing the PILT payment to municipalities will reduce the amount of revenue local governments have to raise from other taxpayers.”
The AGM’s passing of this resolution aligns New Brunswick with 8 out of 10 Canadian provinces that fully remit PILT funds to local governments, delivering direct fiscal fairness and revenue predictability for host communities and reducing the property tax burden for other property owners.
PILT is discretionary compensation paid by the federal government for municipal services (such as real property taxes and service charges) on tax-exempt federal properties (e.g., RCMP buildings, border facilities, Canada Post).
As recommended by UMNB, a total of 11 resolutions were passed and one was defeated at the AGM earlier this month.
Contact:
Alyson Samson – Communications Manager
alyson.samson@umnb.ca | 506-478-1695