Windsor has been handed an “F” grade in a new national report card measuring how friendly Canadian municipalities are toward small businesses, according to the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB).
The CFIB’s 2026 Municipal Report Card assessed 66 municipalities across the country, scoring each on cost burden, regulatory burden and overall small business friendliness. Windsor finished tied for 39th place with Surrey, B.C., landing in a large group of cities that failed to make the grade. In total, 39 of the 66 municipalities evaluated received an “F,” while another 18 were given a “D.” No city in the country scored higher than a C+, with Red Deer, Alberta topping the rankings at 7.33 out of ten.
Windsor’s overall score came in at 4.63 out of ten. The city posted its strongest result on cost burden, earning 7.3 out of ten, while its small business friendliness score was 6.5. Its weakest showing came in the regulatory burden category, where it received just one point out of ten.
Regulatory Burden Drags Down Windsor’s Score
Angela Drennan, CFIB’s Vice-President of Legislative Affairs, said Windsor’s low regulatory score stemmed from several gaps in how the city handles business licensing and permitting. She noted that businesses in Windsor are unable to apply for or pay for licenses online, something she said should be a straightforward fix for a municipality in the post-pandemic era.
Drennan also pointed to an above-average number of permits required to start and operate a business in Windsor, along with the absence of publicly posted timelines for permit and license approvals. She added that the city has no dedicated red tape feedback portal that would allow businesses to flag regulatory challenges directly to the municipality.
Drennan said most municipalities already have in-house IT staff capable of building a simple online form, but stressed that such a tool needs to be specifically designed to capture red tape complaints so that businesses and residents can report the obstacles they face. She said collecting that feedback is only useful if municipalities act on it to fix the underlying problems.
Some Bright Spots Amid the Failing Grade
Despite the overall failing mark, Drennan said the report identified positive elements in Windsor’s approach to small business. She noted that the city performed comparatively well on tax fairness relative to other Ontario municipalities, calling it an example other cities could look to replicate. She also pointed to Windsor’s operating spending growth as a positive, noting the city had not overspent.
Drennan said the report card is not intended to shame municipalities but rather to provide them with a roadmap for improvement.
The CFIB’s report includes several recommendations for municipalities generally, including improving property tax fairness for small businesses, which the federation says often pay a disproportionately high tax rate compared with other property owners. It also recommends municipalities introduce digital permitting systems and dedicated red tape feedback portals.
Other recommendations include broad-based property tax relief for small businesses, including relief tied to disruptions caused by nearby construction, as well as the creation of clear service standards with publicly posted permit and licensing timelines. The report also suggests municipalities consider a two-for-one regulatory policy, under which two existing regulations would be repealed for every new one introduced, and the appointment of a red tape reduction commissioner.
This article references reporting from:
