Appealing Your Municipal Drain Assessment in Ontario

If a bill or notice has arrived for a drain that mostly serves your neighbours, it can feel like you are paying for someone else's project. In rural and edge-of-town Ontario, drains built under the Drainage Act often cross several properties, and each one is assessed a share of the cost.

The deadlines for challenging that share are short, and the route depends on what stage the drain is at. This article walks through how a drain starts, how your land is assessed, and where and when you can appeal.

How a municipal drain gets started

A municipal drain can begin with a petition filed with the clerk of the municipality. The petitioning owners must make up a majority in number of the owners in the area, or own at least 60% of the area requiring drainage. That means neighbours can start a project that includes your land even if you did not sign.

Once a petition is accepted, council must appoint an engineer to examine the area requiring drainage. The engineer's report then assesses each property for benefit, outlet liability and injuring liability, so it is the one to read closely.

There is also a different option. Two or more owners can make a written agreement under s. 2 of the Drainage Act. If it is registered on title it binds future owners and is maintained according to its terms, but it is enforced only through court action.

What the engineer's report assesses

The engineer's report assesses each property for benefit, outlet liability and injuring liability. In plain terms, these measure how much your land gains from the drain, how much it relies on the drain as an outlet, and whether it contributes to problems for the works.

Questions worth asking when you read your assessment:

• Is my property described and measured correctly?
• Which of the three kinds of assessment apply to my land, and why?
• Does my land really drain into this works?
• What stage is this report for: a new drain, an improvement or maintenance?

Appeal routes and deadlines

The right route depends on the stage of the drain and on what you are challenging. Appeal routes and deadlines differ between a new drain, an improvement and a maintenance report, so confirm the stage before counting days.

Under the Drainage Act, the Tribunal is the Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Appeal Tribunal. It is not the Ontario Land Tribunal. Make sure any filing goes to the right body.

Maintenance, repairs and who pays

A drainage works must be maintained and repaired by each local municipality it passes through, and the cost is assessed in the proportions set by the current by-law. So your share can come back in later years, not just when the drain is built.

If the drain is in poor condition, any person affected by it may serve 45 days' notice to compel the municipality to repair it. Damaging or obstructing a drain or its working corridor is an offence. The owner may be ordered to restore the drain and pay costs, and the fine is up to $1,000 or up to thirty days' imprisonment.

Drainage Act charges attach to the property when billed, and the current owner must pay them. If you are buying or selling land, ask about any drain charges early.

Assessments on agricultural land may be eligible for a provincial grant, and the municipality applies for it. For maintenance and repair, the grant applies only to land assessed at the Farm Property Class Tax Rate.

What to do next

• Find the date on your notice and work out which stage of the drain it relates to.
• Read the engineer's report and your assessment line by line.
• Write down the deadline for each possible appeal and count from the correct date.
• Check whether the notice for the court of revision gives its first sitting date, and give notice with your grounds well before the 10-day cutoff.
• Keep copies of everything you send and receive.
• Speak with a lawyer if the amount is significant or the stage of the drain is unclear.

Frequently asked questions