The Rural Voice, 1978-06, Page 18Bert Stewart, Hornby.
Taking . home the Brubacher Bros.
Banner for Breeder's Herd was Medway
Farms Ltd., Ilderton. In addition, Medway
Farms won the first prize ribbon for their
Progeny of Dam.
Roycedale Ned Sue sired by 'Ned' was
first place in the Dry three and
four-year-old class. She was exhibited by
Elmcroft Holsteins Ltd., Beaverton and
Tedesco Bros. Holsteins, Windsor. In this
class, winning the trophy for the Best Bred
and Owned animal was Trudgen Farms
Ltd., Blenheim on their Trudgen Centurion
Dominion daughter, Trudgen Dominion
Dora. The Dry Aged cow class was
Hanover Hill Holsteins' Paclamar Astron-
aut, 1977 Reserve All -Canadian Aged Cow,
A Hanover Hill Astro Anna. The Ebyholme
Farms Ltd. Trophy for the highest placing
Dry Aged Cow 'bred by exhibitor' went to
Hanover Hill Holsteins for this placing.
Bitter dispute in Huron
over O.F.A. tax
proposal
STAFF REPORT
Despite emotional appeals that the
Huron County Federation of Agriculture
support the Ontario Federation's stand on
land tax reform, members voted strongly
against the O.F.A. proposal for farm tax
reform, May 4.
About 50 attended the meeting in
Belgrave, many saying they had come to
the monthly meeting of the Federation only
because they had heard a vote would be
taken on the proposal. They wanted no part
of the O.F.A.'s proposal that food
producing land be tax exempt and farmers
only pay taxes on their farm homes and a
minimal acreage around the house.
Speaker after speaker said he doubted the
government's motives in the proposal to
ease the burden on land tax by paying the
taxes for farmers on all but their homes.
In supporting the motion against the
policy of O.F.A. and the proposal of the
provincial government, Jim McIntosh,
director for east central Huron said that a
large majority of farmers in Huron are not
willing to have the government pay tax on
all but the farm house. There is nothing
wrong with the market value assessment
which the province will be adopting, he
said, if all properties are justly assessed.
As a former clerk -treasurer for Tucker -
smith township, he said, he didn't like the
farm tax proposal. He said the O.F.A.
should stick to its original proposal of
people taxes paying for service to people
and property taxes paying for services to
property.
Debate stopped at this point when Merle
Gunby, vice-president of the Huron
Federation and director from north west
Huron to OFA moved a tabling motion
which was defeated. Mr. Gunby claimed
PG. 18. THE RURAL VOICE/JUNE 1978.
that the time for opposition to the OFA
policy was earlier and that now that the
policy had been accepted by OFA the
county should stand behind the provincial
decision.
After the tabling motion's defeat, Jim
Armstrong of Wingham said he felt that
the government's proposal was part of the
government's cheap food policy. He noted
a meeting of consumer groups and labour
unions some time ago in which both groups
called for public ownership of food
producing land as a way of keeping food
prices down. He wondered what would
happen if he didn't pay the taxes on his
house for three years therefore making it
liable for tax sale. Who would then get the
land on the farm, he wondered. Land taxes
make up only about one per cent of input
costs, he said, and weren't that serious a
problem for farmers.
Maurice Bean, director for central west
Huron defended the OFA policy. He said
that farmers seemed to be happy with the
50 per cent rebate on taxes that the OFA
won to offset education taxes so what was
the fuss over 100 per cent. If farmers feel
so strongly about paying their share of
taxes, he said, then why did farmers want
exemptions from sales tax on items they
buy?
George Underwood of Wingham said
that he was concerned that many of the
OFA directors from across the province
who approved the policy don't really know
what's going on. He said that at an
information meeting held earlier in Clinton
the OFA executive didn't seem to get the
message that farmers didn't like the policy.
Maybe now they'd listen, he said.
Ernie Ackert, a visiting member of the
Bruce Federation related the story of a
number of lakes on farms in Bruce county
where, during the depression the owners
had asked that they be relieved of paying
taxes on the water portion of the lake since
it was non-productive farmland. Later
these owners discovered that they had lost
ownership of the lake portions of their farm
on their deeds and the lakes were now
owned by the government.
Paul Ross, Clinton lawyer said that
before coming to Clinton he had worked for
a time at the Ministry of Revenue and felt
that they themselves, didn't seem to know
where they were going with land tax
reform. "Why take chances with your own
land?" he wondered.
Gordon Hill, past president of OFA came
to the defence of the OFA policy saying he
believed the government was sincere in its
proposal. As far back as 1948, he said, the
Federation had been asking for tax relief.
Under a great deal of stress the
government did come up with the
education tax rebate in 1970, he said. He
said the government's task in reform was
complicated by the pledge of former
agriculture minister Bill Stewart that any
new taxation system would not be harder
on the farmer than the old system. With
the education tax rebate and the fact that
the whole tax assessment could be claimed
as an expense it meant that farmers were
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