City of Grande Prairie Financial Services sous-fonds. — 1917-1978. — 442 cm of textual records.
Agency History
At the first council meeting of the newly formed Village of Grande Prairie on June 15, 1914, G.R. Wilson was appointed secretary-treasurer at a salary of $150 for the 6 month term of the remainder of that year. The assessment of property owners was one the first orders of business, and that fall the first tax levy was announced: 5 mills for school tax and 3 mills for municipal tax. With only 100 residents in the village, and many of those struggling to establish themselves, payment of taxes was sporadic.
In 1917, a by-law providing for a business tax on businesses along the main streets of commerce was passed, with a mill rate of 12 mills. The total budget that year was $1,500 and since taxes were not collected until fall, the budget amount was borrowed from the Union Bank. That same year the town went into debt for the first time, borrowing $15,000 for a suitable system of firefighting.
Custodial History
The City of Grande Prairie Financial Services sous-fonds is retained at City Hall.
Scope and Content
The sous-fonds consists of Accounting records and Assessment/Taxation records. Under Accounting there are financial statements, Department of Municipal Affairs statistics, and a series of over-sized ledgers: Town Cash Book Receipts, Town Cash Book Expenditures, Journal Entries and Debenture Register. The Assessment/Taxation records include assessment cards, assessment and tax rolls, tax collection ledgers and documents for tax recovery of unpaid taxes.
Notes
Title based on the contents of the fonds.
Table of Contents
| Series 457.01 | Accounting series |
| Series 457.02 | Assessment/Taxation series |
| Series 457.01 | Accounting series. — 1917-1971. — 82 cm of textual records.The Accounting Department looks after accounts receivable, accounts payable, journal entries to credit or debit the various departments and debentures for borrowing.The series consists of financial statements, Town Cash Book Receipts ledgers, Town Cash Book Expenditures ledgers, Journal Entries ledgers and a Debentures Register. |
| SubSeries 457.01.01 | Financial statements. — 1917-1969. — 40 cm of textual records.The sub-series consists of both hand-written and printed financial statements and audited financial statements. One file contains the financial statements sent to the Department of Municipal Affairs and includes statistics on the City of Grande Prairie. |
| SubSeries 457.01.03 | Accounts payable. — 1929-1937. — 11 cm of textual records.The sub-series consists of four Town Cash Book Expenditures which record the expenditures of the various committees in a given year: the Works Committee which took care of street & sidewalk construction and repair, drainage, engineering, and bridge maintenance; the Finance Committee which covered administration, police department and schools; the Cemetery, Health and Relief Committee which saw to indigent hospital accounts, poor relief and medical aid, and mother’s allowance; the Town Hall & Reception Committee which saw to the expenses of council and running the Town Hall; the Waterworks & Park Committee which kept the parks, waterworks and electrical system in good repair; and the Fire & Light Committee which had the responsibility of street lighting. |
| SubSeries 457.01.04 | Journal entries. — 1942-1971. — 21 cm of textual records.The sub-series consists of three journals which record the disbursements for the support of the town of Grande Prairie through various departments: Works Committee, Finance Committee, Cemetery, Health & Relief Committee, Town Hall & Reception Committee, Waterworks & Park Committee, and the Fire & Light Committee. |
| SubSeries 457.01.05 | Debentures. — 1917-1958. — 3 cm of textual records.The sub-series consists of one register which records loans made to the Village and Town of Grande Prairie to finance operations to the point when it became a City. |
| Series 457.02 | Assessment/Taxation series. — 1918-[1978]. — 360 cm of textual records.The Assessment/Taxation Department is responsible for the assessment of homes and business for the purpose of taxation, and the collection of those taxes. Assessment forms give details on buildings, such as components, finishing and condition. The Assessment and Tax Roll relates name and address of owner; lot size; value of lot and improvements; municipal, school, hospital and supplementary taxes payable; tax arrears and payments. Both assessment forms and tax roll are organized according to property lot and plan number.The series consists of residential and business assessment forms, Assessment and Tax Rolls, Taxes Received journals, Registers of Forfeited Lands, Tax Sales Land Record, and documents relating to tax recovery. Business Tax Recapitulations and a list of non-property owners is included in the back of some of the journals. |
| SubSeries 457.02.01 | Assessment. — 1932-1963. — 180 cm of textual records.Assessment forms are designed to calculate the amount of taxes due on the improvements of a specific lot. Thus, they give particulars of any buildings on the city lot, such as the existence of a basement, foundation, attic or porches; and the quality and finishing of construction–roof, exterior walls, interior walls, floors and trim–as well as additions such as utilities, plumbing, and type of heating. Assessments are filed according to Lot, Block and Plan number.The sub-series consists of one assessment form book with assessments of homes and businesses from 1932-1940, and three series of assessment cards: the 1955 and 1963 residential assessments and the 1958 business assessment. |
| SubSeries 457.02.02 | Assessment and Tax Roll. — 1919-1945. — 81 cm of textual records.Assessment & Tax Roll Registers are the early form in which the Town of Grande Prairie kept the records of taxes owed on specific lots. Information in the registers includes the name of owner; address; Lot, Block and Plan numbers; lot size; value of lot without improvements; value of improvements; mill rate; and the municipal, school, hospital and supplementary taxes due, their arrears and payments.The sub-series consists of 19 yearly registers. At the back of some of the ledgers is a business tax recapitulation and a list of non-property owners. Summaries of each Plan Number and the total assessment and taxes for the year are also included. |
| SubSeries 457.02.03 | Tax collection. — 1933-1947. — 11 cm of textual records.Taxes Received Ledgers recorded the amount of taxes received on a given property and how those taxes were dispersed among general funds, public school, separate school, social services, hospital and business. Any license fees were also recorded here.The sub-series consists of four large registers. |
| SubSeries 457.02.04 | Tax recovery. — 1918-1978. — 88 cm of textual records.When taxes were left unpaid, it was the duty of the Assessment/ Taxation department to recoup those taxes through correspondence with the owners and eventually by selling the lot for tax sale. Tax Arrears Lists recorded properties on which taxes were in arrears and to what amount. Registers of Forfeited Lands recorded lands to which the town held title, either because the owner had forfeited the land for unpaid taxes or because the town had developed the lot but not sold it. The Tax Recovery Register lists properties on which arrears are due, in order of legal description, and the amount of arrears on a given property, the sale price, the purchaser, his/her occupation, address, and whether the land was redeemed by the owner. A Tax Sales Land Record, in order of date of sale, records the payments made on properties sold by tax sale.The sub-series consists of Tax Arrears Lists, Registers of Forfeited Lands, a Tax Recovery Register, and a Tax Sales Land Records Register. As well, there are files of correspondence and records of sales for each year from 1921 to 1958. |