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unofficial consolidation, the official version is held by the municipal clerk.
Document Number: 190841
EXPLANATORY MEMO
INTER-MUNICIPAL BUSINESS
LICENCE BYLAW, 2023, NO. 3246
The City of Langley participates in an Inter-Municipal Business Licence (IMBL) partnership,
through the City's current IMBL Bylaw. This allows trade contractors and construction
industry professionals to operate across 13 Fraser Valley municipalities without requiring
separate business licences from each local government.
In 2019 the Village of Harrison Hot Springs and the City of Merritt requested to join the IMBL
partnership which was approved by 9 out of the 11 Fraser Valley municipalities. City of
Langley was one of these 9 municipalities. All 9 municipalities amended their IMBL Bylaws not
realizing that two of the original partners had not agreed to the proposed amendment. The two
partners who did not agree to include the Village of Harrison Hot Springs and the City of
Merritt have not amended their Bylaws. In order to align the Fraser Valley IMBL Bylaw it was
decided amongst all 11 original Fraser Valley IMBL Bylaw members to include the Village of
Harrison Hot Springs but not the City of Merritt due to its geographical location. The 9
participants that have the City of Merritt in their bylaw have agreed to remove the City of
Merritt from the Fraser Valley IMBL. Staff do not anticipate any negative budget impacts from
removing this municipality. Each of the 11 original member municipalities must adopt a new,
or amending bylaw prior to January 1, 2024. Rather than making amendments to the current
bylaw, for simplicity, staff prepared a new bylaw to replace the current consolidated bylaw.
In addition to removing City of Merrit from the list of participating municipalities, there were a
number of housekeeping updates made including the following:
-
Replacing "Intermunicipal" with "Inter-municipal" throughout the bylaw to align
with other municipalities' bylaws;
-
Including bylaw name citation section;
-
Updating definitions of "Mobile Business" and "Inter-municipal Business
Licence" to align with other municipalities' bylaws;
-
Correcting various typos.
Background
The IMBL allows contractors to carry on business in any of the participating municipalities
without obtaining separate municipal business licences. This reduces the cost of doing
business for contractors, streamlines the licensing process, and makes it easier for
contractors to do business in the participating municipalities.
Currently the Fraser Valley IMBL partnership includes, the City of Langley, City of
Abbotsford, City of Chilliwack, City of Delta, District of Hope, District of Kent, Township of
Langley, City of Maple Ridge, District of Mission, City of Pitt Meadows, City of Surrey, City of
Merritt and Village of Harrison Hot Springs. The revenue generated from IMBLs is shared on
the basis that the principal municipality (i.e. where the contractor is located) retains 90
percent of the business licence fee revenue and the remaining 10 percent is evenly
distributed amongst the other participating municipalities.
Document Number: 190841
INTER-MUNICIPAL BUSINESS
LICENCE BYLAW, 2023, NO. 3246
A Bylaw to enter into an Inter-municipal Business Licence Scheme.
WHEREAS Fraser Valley municipalities wish to enter into an agreement with
one another to permit certain categories of Businesses to operate across municipal
jurisdictions within the Fraser Valley region while minimizing the need to obtain a
separate Municipal Business Licence in each jurisdiction;
AND WHEREAS each of the undersigned local governments (herein called singularly
the Participating Municipality or as a group the "Participating Municipalities") has
adopted this Bylaw;
NOW THEREFORE the Council of the City of Langley, in open meeting assembled,
enacts as follows:
1. There is hereby established an Inter-municipal Business Licence scheme, pursuant
to section 14 of the Community Charter, and according to the terms and conditions
of this Bylaw.
2. This Bylaw may be cited for all purposes as "Inter-municipal Business Licence
Bylaw, 2023, No. 3246".
3. In this bylaw:
(1) "Business" has the meaning as defined by the Community Charter;
(2) "Community Charter" means the Community Charter, S.B.C. 2003, c. 26;
(3) "Mobile Business" means a trades contractor or other professional related to the
construction industry or a contactor that performs maintenance and/or repair of
land and buildings from other than their Premises;
(4) "Inter-municipal Business Licence" means a business licence which authorizes a
Mobile Business to be carried on within the jurisdictional boundaries of any or all
of the Participating Municipalities in accordance with this Bylaw and will be in
addition to a Municipal Business Licence;
(5) "Municipal Business Licence" means a licence or permit, other than an Inter-
municipal Business Licence, issued by a Participating Municipality that
Inter-municipal Business Licence Bylaw, 2023, No. 3246
Page 2
authorizes a Business to be carried on within the jurisdictional boundaries of that
Participating Municipality;
(6) "Participating Municipality" means those of the following municipalities that have
adopted this Bylaw:
City of Abbotsford
Township of Langley
City of Chilliwack
City of Maple Ridge
City of Delta
City of Mission
District of Hope
City of Pitt Meadows
District of Kent
City of Surrey
City of Langley
Village of Harrison Hot Springs
(7) "Person" has the meaning as defined by the Interpretation Act, RSBC 1996, c.
238;
(8) "Premises" means a fixed or permanent location where the Person ordinarily
carries on Business; and
(9) "Principal Municipality" means the Participating Municipality where a Business is
located or has a Premises.
4. Subject to the provisions of the Inter-municipal Business Licence Bylaw, the
Participating Municipalities will permit a Person who has obtained an Inter-municipal
Business Licence to carry on Business within any Participating Municipality for the
term authorized by the Inter-municipal Business Licence without obtaining a
Municipal Business Licence in the other Participating Municipalities.
5. A Principal Municipality may issue an Inter-municipal Business Licence to an
applicant for an Inter-municipal Business Licence provided the applicant is a Mobile
Business and meets the requirements of this Bylaw in addition to the requirements
of the Municipal Business Licence bylaw of the Principal Municipality.
6. Notwithstanding that a Person may hold an Inter-municipal Business Licence that
would make it unnecessary to obtain a Municipal Business Licence in other
Participating Municipalities, the Person must still comply with all other regulations of
any municipal business licence bylaw or regulation in addition to any other bylaws
that may apply within any jurisdiction in which the Person carries on Business.
7. A Person that operates a Mobile Business may only apply for an Inter-municipal
Business Licence from the Participating Municipality in which they maintain a
Premises.
Inter-municipal Business Licence Bylaw, 2023, No. 3246
Page 2
8. Neither this Bylaw nor the issuance of an Inter-municipal Business Licence
eliminates a requirement of a holder of an Inter-municipal Business Licence to obtain
a Municipal Business Licence for each Premises that is maintained within the
jurisdiction of the Participating Municipality.
9. The Inter-municipal Business Licence fee is $250 and is payable to the Principal
Municipality. The Inter-municipal Business Licence fee is separate and additional to
any Municipal Business Licence that may be required.
10. Notwithstanding that some Participating Municipalities pro-rate their Municipal
Business Licence fee, the Inter-municipal Business Licence fee must not be pro-
rated.
11. The revenue generated from the Inter-municipal Business Licence fees is shared
amongst all Participating Municipalities using the revenue sharing formula referred to
in Schedule "A" of this Bylaw.
12. The Participating Municipalities agree that the revenue sharing formula will be
reviewed from time to time, and will be altered as necessary upon agreement of all
Participating Municipalities.
13. The revenue generated from Inter-municipal Business Licence fees collected by the
Participating Municipalities will be distributed by each Participating Municipality to
the other Participating Municipalities as follows:
(a) The revenue generated from Inter-municipal Business Licence fees collected
from January 1 to December 31 inclusive will be distributed by February 28 of
year following the year in which the fees were collected.
14. The term of the Inter-municipal Business Licence is the same as the term for the
Municipal Business Licence issued by the Principal Municipality for that Business
category.
15. An Inter-municipal Business Licence issued within the 12 month term of the Inter-
municipal business licence scheme established by this Bylaw shall, until its term
expires, remain valid within the jurisdictional boundaries of any or all of the
Participating Municipalities.
16. Each Participating Municipality shall provide the other Participating Municipalities
with information regarding the Inter-municipal Business Licences that it issues by
way of regular updates on a shared database that is available to all Participating
Municipalities.
17. A Participating Municipality may exercise the authority of the Principal Municipality
and suspend an Inter-municipal Business Licence in relation to conduct by the
holder within the Participating Municipality which would give rise to the power to
suspend a business licence under the Community Charter or the Municipal Business
Licence bylaw or regulation of the Participating Municipality. The suspension shall
be in effect throughout all of the Participating Municipalities and it shall be unlawful
Inter-municipal Business Licence Bylaw, 2023, No. 3246
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for the holder to carry on the Business authorized by the Inter-municipal Business
Licence in any Participating Municipality for the period of the suspension.
18. If the Council of a Participating Municipality is of the opinion that reasonable cause
exists to cancel an Inter-municipal Business Licence issued by another of the
Participating Municipalities, then it may by resolution reciting the details of such
reasonable cause request the Principal Municipality that issued the licence to
consider whether or not the licence should be cancelled pursuant to section 15 or
section 60(2) of the Community Charter.
19. Any resolution made under section 18 of this Bylaw shall be communicated in writing
to the Principal Municipality that issued the Inter-municipal Business Licence,
together with such documentary evidence of the reasonable cause as may be
available, and such Principal Municipality shall as soon thereafter as reasonably
possible consider whether the Inter-municipal Business Licence should be
cancelled.
20. In making any decision as to whether to cancel an Inter-municipal Business Licence
under section 19 of this Bylaw or section 15 or section 60(2) of the Community
Charter, the Principal Municipality shall approach the matter as if the conduct
complained of had occurred within its own jurisdictional boundaries.
21. The Principal Municipality will retain the authority to hear related reconsiderations or
appeals of suspensions and cancellations of Inter-municipal Business Licences.
22. Nothing in this Bylaw affects the authority of a Participating Municipality to suspend
or cancel any business licence issued by that municipality or to enact regulations in
respect of any category of Business under section 15 of this Community Charter.
23. The invalidity or unenforceability of any provision of this Bylaw shall not affect the
validity or enforceability of any other provisions of this Bylaw any such invalid or
unenforceable provision shall be deemed to be severable.
24. In the event of an inconsistency between this Bylaw and any other bylaw relating to
business licencing of a Participating Municipality, the provisions of this Bylaw shall
take precedence.
25. "Intermunicipal Business Licence Bylaw, 2012, No. 2898" and any amendments
thereto are hereby repealed.
This Bylaw shall come into force and take effect on the 1st day of January, 2024.
Inter-municipal Business Licence Bylaw, 2023, No. 3246
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READ A FIRST, SECOND AND THIRD TIME this fourth day of December, 2023.
FINALLY ADOPTED this day of , 2023.
_________________________
MAYOR
_________________________
CORPORATE OFFICER
Inter-municipal Business Licence Bylaw, 2023, No. 3246
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SCHEDULE A
The revenue generated from Inter-municipal Business Licence fees is shared based on
the following formula:
The Principal Municipality is to retain 90% of the fee collected and the remaining 10% is
to be evenly distributed to the remainder of the Participating Municipalities.