Accessibility Tools

Learn more about property taxes?

1. Am I double taxed?  Why do I pay taxes to both Colchester and Bible Hill?

A common misconception is that residents of Bible Hill pay "double taxes."  In reality, all property owners in Colchester pay a base municipal tax rate, and many communities also pay additional tax rates for local services provided within their area.  These are not duplicate charges for the same services.

For example, residents can pay one or more additional rates for services such as fire protection, sewer systems, sidewalk infrastructure, or streetlights.  These are often referred to as ‘area rates’ because they fund services provided within a specific community rather than across the entire municipality.

Bible Hill's area tax rate works the same way.  It funds local services provided within Bible Hill, including fire protection, sewer services, sidewalks, streetlights, parks, recreation facilities, crossing guards, community events, and other local amenities.

The difference is that, instead of those local services being taxed and administered directly by the Municipality, they are administered by the Village Commission and funded through the Village tax rate.

In Simple Terms:

Everyone in Colchester pays the base municipal tax rate.

Communities that receive additional local services pay additional taxes to support those services.  Bible Hill's tax rate is the mechanism used to fund those local services in Bible Hill.


2. What does the Colchester base tax rate pay for?

The ‘residential general’ or ‘commercial general’ tax rate paid to Colchester helps fund services such as:

  • RCMP policing

  • Public education (schools)

  • Solid waste management

  • Planning and development

  • Emergency management

  • Economic and community development

  • Municipal roads (Osprey Ct, Covington Pl, Justamere Dr, Retson Dr, Fenwood Dr)

  • Recreation services (Rath Eastlink Community Centre, Fundy Discovery Site, etc)

  • Public works

  • Administration and Council


3. What does the Bible Hill area tax rate pay for?

The area tax rate paid to the Village helps fund local services and amenities within Bible Hill, including:

  • Fire protection and prevention by Bible Hill Fire & Emergency

  • Fire hydrants

  • Sanitary sewer

  • Sidewalks

  • Streetlights

  • Crosswalks and crossing guards

  • Development and maintenance of parks, playgrounds, splashpad, sports fields, trails and green spaces

  • Recreation programs and events

  • Community hall / fire station / maintenance shop operations

  • Snow and ice clearing of sidewalks and other village properties

  • Maintenance staff, vehicles, and equipment

  • Administration and Commission

It also helps the Village set aside money in reserves to help fund future capital purchases, such as fire trucks and other infrastructure, which helps reduce the need for sudden tax increases when large projects occur.


4. If Bible Hill provides local services, why doesn't Colchester charge us less?

Because the Colchester base tax rate and Bible Hill tax fund different things.

The Colchester base tax rate funds municipal-wide services that all property owners receive, regardless of where they live.

The Bible Hill area tax rate funds additional local services provided specifically within the Village.

One does not replace the other.


5. Why are Bible Hill taxes higher than some other areas of Colchester?

Generally speaking, Bible Hill provides more local services and amenities than more rural areas.

For example, Bible Hill has an extensive network of sidewalks, streetlights, parks, trails, sports fields, recreation facilities, community events, crossing guards, sewer infrastructure, and fire protection services.  These services have costs associated with them.

Communities that receive different levels of service will often have different tax rates.


6. Are taxes in Bible Hill more expensive than every other community?

Not necessarily.  When comparing property taxes, it is important to compare the total tax bill and services within the community, not just one portion of the tax rate.

Many towns and cities in Nova Scotia have total tax rates higher than Bible Hill.  In some areas, services such as sewer are also billed separately rather than being included within property taxes.

The Province of Nova Scotia publishes tax rate data, which can be found online at the following link:
Municipal Property Tax Rates | Open Data | Nova Scotia

Compared to the total residential tax rates in Bible Hill of 1.585 per $100 of assessment, per the above link, the total residential tax rates in nearby towns (for 2025-2026) are as follows:

Town of Amherst – 1.67

Town of Antigonish – 1.3

Town of New Glasgow – 1.84

Town of Pictou – 1.69

Town of Stellarton – 1.88

Town of Trenton – 2.04

Town of Truro – 1.9025

Town of Westville – 2.13

For information on other area rates in Colchester County, follow this link: https://www.colchester.ca/tax-rates


7. Where can I see how tax dollars are spent?

The Village publishes a variety of financial information online, including:

  • Annual budgets

  • Audited financial statements

  • Meeting minutes

  • Expense reports

These documents are available on the Village website and provide detailed information on how Village funds are used.

Have more specific questions?  Reach out to a Village Commissioner to discuss.


8. What's the easiest way to think about property taxes?

A simple way to look at it is:

Colchester taxes pay for municipality-wide services.

Bible Hill taxes pay for local services within the community.

You are not paying twice for the same service, you are contributing toward different services provided by two different levels of local government.  As noted above, the same principals apply in other areas of the County.  However, Bible Hill has a dedicated team working exclusively on our community.


9. Do Bible Hill and Colchester control everything in the community?

No.  Different levels of government have different responsibilities.

For example:

Province of Nova Scotia – represented by your M.L.A.

  • Education

  • Most roads and bridges, curbs, and storm drains

  • Healthcare

  • Justice and public safety

  • Public housing

  • Consumer services (Access NS, land registry, vital statistics)

  • Environment and natural resources

  • (and more)

Municipality of Colchester – represented by your Councillor / Mayor

  • Municipal-wide services (examples listed in question 2)

Village of Bible Hill – represented by Village Commissioners

  • Local Village services and amenities (examples listed in question 2)