Catholic School Tax Support
Protect and promote Catholic education…Ensure you are registered to vote as a Catholic separate school supporter
- Ensuring you are registered as a separate school supporter is important for the protection and preservation of Catholic education in Ontario.
- As a registered Catholic school supporter, you have the opportunity to elect trustees who will represent and address your interests and concerns at the school board level and at various levels of the government.
- Registering your Catholic school support ensures your school board’s assessment roll is accurate. This is important because:
- Your school board’s assessment base is a public record of the breadth of support for Catholic schools
- It helps track demographic trends for educational planning purposes
- It guarantees your right to enroll your children in Catholic schools
School Support Designation
As a property owner in Ontario, you are required to support a school board, even if you do not have children or your children are not currently attending school. By default, your school support is directed to your municipality’s English Public School Board.In the case of a residential property occupied by tenants, they can direct the school support for that property.
Property owners, occupants, and tenants can select which school board they choose to support. Additionally, you will be able to vote in the next municipal election for trustees for the school board that you choose to support.
The Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC) is legislatively required to collect school support information and provide it in the assessment roll to every municipality and school board.
Changing your school support online
Based on your eligibility, property owners and tenants registered with MPAC can view and update the school support designation online.
To learn more about eligibility requirements or change your school support designation, please visit mpac.ca/schoolsupport or scan the QR code.
What if I have difficulty updating my school support online?
A step-by-step guide is available on mpac.ca which will help users navigate MPAC’s school support portal. Alternatively, you can obtain the Application for Direction of School Support (ADSS) Form from mpac.ca or from your school board’s office. To register or for further assistance with the online school support tool, you can contact MPAC’s Customer Contact Centre at 1-866-296-6722 or 1-877 889-6722 (TTY).
A step-by-step guide is available on mpac.ca which will help users navigate MPAC’s school support portal. Alternatively, you can obtain the Application for Direction of School Support (ADSS) Form from mpac.ca or from your school board’s office. To register or for further assistance with the online school support tool, you can contact MPAC’s Customer Contact Centre at 1-866-296-6722 or 1-877 889-6722 (TTY).
Municipal Property Assessment Corporation contact information:
1340 Pickering Parkway, Suite 101
Pickering ON L1V 0C4
Email via: mpac.ca/ContactUs
Voting
How to check if you are registered:
- Visit voterlookup.ca, an online service created by the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC) to check the accuracy of your voter information.
- Or call your Municipal Clerk’s Office to inquire how to check the local list of electors.
If your name is not on the list of electors or if the information is incorrect (e.g., name, address or school support data missing or incorrect) you should:
- Update or change your information, add a name to an address, or change your school support directly on the voterlookup.ca website.
- Go to the municipal offices for your community and fill out an application to be added to the list or to correct information. Proof of identification may be required. Please call your municipal office to determine what documentation you may need.
At the Polling Station:
- Verify that you are registered as a separate school supporter. If your support status is incorrect ask for an ‘Application to Amend Voters’ List’. This form may be completed and submitted at the polling station.
- Ensure the ballot you are given is a separate school ballot.
Voting for Catholic School Board Representation:
- Catholic ratepayers must declare themselves to be Catholic and separate school electors in order to cast a vote in the election of separate school trustees in municipal elections
Municipal Elections
Ontario municipal elections are held every four ( 4 ) years in the month of October. During these elections, school trustees are elected as well. In order to vote for a Catholic school trustee, you must be registered as a Catholic school supporter. The next municipal elections will take place in 2022. Have your say. Go to voterlookup.ca to confirm or update your electoral information. One of the greatest rights we have in Canada is to “have your say.” In Ontario, we are all given the freedom of choice in choosing our Mayor, City Councillor, and School Board Trustee. Ensuring you have a voice in the future elections means ensuring you are on the voter’s list. And, by ensuring your school support is directed to the “English Separate” school board, you will be able to cast your ballot for a BGCDSB Trustee.
If you still have unanswered questions regarding Catholic School Tax Support, please contact us at [email protected] or call the Catholic Education Centre, 519-364-5820.