CANSO — In a bid to resolve a bitter, years-long tax dispute in the former Town of Canso, the Municipality of the District of Guysborough (MODG) has hired national management consultant KPMG to conduct an independent review.
At its regular meeting on Oct. 15, council voted without dissent to award the contract to the firm’s public sector practice, which submitted a proposal earlier this month to complete the work for $75,000 plus travel. The firm has committed to delivering its report by Feb. 15, 2026.
The decision marks the latest – and most concrete – step in the municipality’s response to criticism over tax inequities in District 8, where property owners pay an additional area rate of $1.5145 per $100 of assessment for residential and resource properties and $1.3470 per $100 for commercial properties.
These charges are applied on top of MODG’s general municipal rates of $0.77 per $100 for residential and resource, and $2.74 per $100 for commercial properties. The regime stems from the 2012 amalgamation of the former town with the wider municipality and continues to generate frustration among some residents, who refer to the surcharge as the Canso Triple Tax.
Council voted in May to seek an independent consultant after District 4 Councillor Dave Hanhams said the issue had become too complex to resolve internally. “I don’t know where else to go with it,” he said at the time. “I would like advice and direction from an independent person.”
At the Oct. 15 meeting, Deputy CAO Shawn Andrews explained that when the request for proposals (RFP), issued June 5, failed to attract a qualified bidder by the June 26 deadline, staff ultimately connected with KPMG’s Ontario-based public sector practice through a referral from legal counsel at Stewart McKelvey.
“On October 7, a proposal was received from KPMG to conduct the Canso taxation study,” he told council. “We’ve reviewed the submission, and it meets the requirements of the RFP.”
According to a briefing note from Director of Finance Danita Imlay, “The proposal commits to complete the project by February 15, 2026, at a cost of $75,000 plus travel... A budget of $100,000 was approved for the completion of this project.”
MODG Chief Administrative Officer Barry Carroll emphasized the firm’s credentials and independence. “They’re probably one of the largest, if not the largest, accounting firms in Canada,” he said, noting that the firm’s working group assigned to the project is based outside Nova Scotia. “If anybody says there’s not a perception of independence here, I don’t know how you get it any more independent.”
He added that the firm would conduct eight interviews, including with council, MODG senior staff and the Eastern Guysborough County Ratepayers Association. “They’re going to meet with them... to get everybody’s opinion on the project,” Carroll said.
Council’s decision last week followed months of community pressure.
In March, the municipality retained the area rate in its 2025-26 budget, prompting public outcry and direct criticism from the ratepayers association’s president, Bill Bond, who called the move “a slap in the face.”
He later welcomed the shift in direction when council agreed to pursue a consultant. “It’s a very good start,” he told The Journal in May. “Because it’s not going to go away.”
He reiterated that point in an interview last week, following council’s decision to hire KPMG, but he also warned that area ratepayers are quickly losing patience.
“It is a start,” he said, adding: “But time is running out. And when this report comes back, we’ll be into another tax year. That’s concerning.”
He noted, “This [issue] has nothing to do with [Canso property] assessments... Those guys – not all of council, of course – keep saying that. But that’s just smoke and mirrors. It’s the triple tax.”
Bill MacMillan, secretary-treasurer of the Canso and Area Development Association, seemed to agree, stating in a separate interview last week, “People in Canso... have been paying that different rate of tax... based on certain claims by the municipality. And when it’s held up to the light of day, it appears that... Canso has been kind of held back. And the evidence of that is... the lack of building permits being issued. Why would somebody build a home in Canso... when they’re going to be paying almost triple the tax?”
He confirmed that he, too, was encouraged by council’s decision to hire KPMG. “I would assume it’s a good move,” he said.
According to its website, KPMG Canada is a full service professional firm offering audit and assurance, tax, and advisory services, whose advisory arm provides management consulting, risk consulting, cybersecurity and deal advisory. In the public sector, the firm specifies “government transformation efforts” that help improve strategy, operations, policy, accountability and performance.
