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Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike
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Think your property taxes are high now? You ain't seen nothing yet. - G$ E5 F+ V' J: O* {5 z' i* {$ W& Z
. o7 c; D- j3 g& o6 L. REdmontonians could face a "scary" tax hike of up to 10% next year, Mayor Stephen Mandel said. That would be the highest property tax increase since the 1980s. $ s# l2 }5 ~: v+ N
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Mandel tossed out the figure yesterday following a presentation by administration that outlined the intense economic pressures the city is facing as a result of Alberta's economic boom. % V9 p9 n- U% S' K8 R- J
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"Looking at this we're talking an 8-10% tax increase," Mandel said in council chambers.
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. e9 j' N. m$ e: ZCity manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates2 Q; x7 S+ w/ b9 `" m' w
"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said. + X" D3 b$ e f5 P' S7 ]
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A hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year.
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& ~4 J- W4 s2 L8 k"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel.
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Coun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point. 6 `$ V- b3 J' B+ d! \/ X
% R, P& S, F/ LThe draft budget does not come out until November.
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"I'm not looking for a major increase next year, at least not too much more than we've already approved for this year," Hayter said.
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"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out."
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Maurer said income from investments and various financial strategies could offset a large hike. / `# @( `5 D( z, r! J- P7 X
2 o! o* I- G' R9 O% qHowever, he said there aren't really any city programs that could be cut in order to save a few bucks. 2 h* o/ f0 d( ]# w3 t+ Q
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"We've certainly got more demands," Maurer said, noting council still has to find money to fund an improved snow-clearing program.
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5 M9 N5 y7 S7 I1 }3 E% [% l. YScott Hennig, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said there's no excuse for a double-digit tax increase.
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He said hikes should be limited to inflation, which is pegged at 5% both this year and next, according to the city. # y T6 J/ |3 h; q, H, t. ]
$ Q* k2 d/ p! K d( a" _/ I# h"They're going to hear from a lot of angry taxpayers if they're looking at 10%," Hennig said.
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"I don't know what some of these members of council are going to be able to say to some pensioner who got a 2% hike in their pension."
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The average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said.
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0 A1 G! B4 i5 b% A: R$ zThe tax on homes will go up higher than average - about 7%. The figures include both municipal tax and the provincial education tax, which the city collects.
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Tax bills will be mailed May 25 and payments are due June 30. |
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发表于 2007-5-9 22:25
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发表于 2007-5-10 11:37
