Kitchener will ask the province to allow fee for paper bills

Kitchener councillors continue to look for ways to reduce paper billing costs.

At a recent council meeting, councillors agreed to ask the province to make changes to the Municipal Act that would allow municipalities to “grandfather-out paper billing as the default option, and to permit municipalities to establish fees for paper billing for new accounts that opt for this method of delivery.”

The city’s finances and corporate services committee previously heard that the act requires municipalities to provide a property tax bill to every taxpayer, and can’t force people to receive bills electronically.

The legislation was otherwise unclear about fees for paper bills, city staff concluded.

When it comes to Kitchener Utilities bills, a prior Ontario Energy Board decision involving Enbridg