Report From Parliament Hill

Eric Melillo, MP, Kenora Riding

Dear Constituents,

It was a busy week visiting different communities in the region. I was in Northwest Angle No. 33 First Nation to attend the celebration for the completion of their new water treatment plant. While this is a step in the right direction, more work needs to be done to end all long-term drinking water advisories that still exist in First Nation communities in the region and across Canada. The government promised to have all long-term advisories lifted by March 2021. My Conservative colleagues and I continue to call on the government to lift all advisories as soon as possible. 
Later in the week, I met with the Pikangikum Health Authority to receive an update on their new hospital project. I also met with the Ontario Minister of Education, Stephen Lecce, and Minister of Indigenous Affairs and Northern Development, Greg Rickford, to discuss education in northwestern Ontario and how the federal government can support the provinces. I then ended the week in Sioux Lookout to deliver gifts on behalf of the municipality’s sister city, Vashkivtsi in Ukraine.
Underused Housing Tax
My office has been fielding questions from residents, cottagers, and international property owners about the underused housing tax (UHT) that recently came into effect earlier this year. Many have been unable to get answers from Finance Canada or the Canada Revenue Agency about if they have to file for the UHT, even if they meet the regulatory criteria for an exemption. 
While the intent of this new tax is to address Canada’s housing crisis in major cities like Toronto and Vancouver, its impacts are catching many Canadian and foreign property owners by surprise in Canada’s border communities, such as those in northwestern Ontario.
Consequently, Canadian and foreign property owners are concerned, confused, and anxious about this new UHT and their tax obligations. This should not be the case. Law-abiding property owners and taxpayers want to avoid penalties and punishment. 
Whenever the federal government implements a new policy, including tax policy, it should always have all the answers to the questions it may receive from concerned citizens and taxpayers and respond clearly and definitively in a timely manner. It is simply reckless of this federal government to rollout and implement a new tax policy with little communication and so much uncertainty, risks, and costs against Canadians and foreign property owners.
As taxpayers, Canadians deserve to know whether they are receiving good value for their taxpayer money from the implementation and enforcement of the UHT, which is why my Conservative colleagues and I wrote to the Parliamentary Budget Officer to do a cost-benefit analysis of this new tax, clarify with the government whether property owners still need to file for the UHT, even if they are exempt, and report his findings to Parliament before the House of Commons returns in September. 
Working for You 
If you’re planning to be in Ottawa and are interested in attending Question Period or taking a tour of Parliament, please let me know and my office can help reserve Question Period and tour tickets. 
As always, if there is anything my office can assist you with, please call me at 807-223-2182 (Dryden) or 807-468-2170 (Kenora) or email me at [email protected].
Sincerely,
Eric Melillo
Member of Parliament
Kenora Riding