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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. ' q% q2 Y- j0 ^
) [; u& ~) f" T- ?6 TEdmontonians 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. ! {* ?& s8 K, ?* `" m, O' p
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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.
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* F6 P2 N8 o; \8 Z5 c7 O2 E/ \: T"Looking at this we're talking an 8-10% tax increase," Mandel said in council chambers.
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2 v' Z, g2 v4 h qCity manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates
1 E$ a- b% ~0 w# k"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said.
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& P5 D: C9 w1 m- u+ X) W. oA hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year.
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3 Q7 ?% T6 Z1 L* A"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel. & W& S* f7 J& @# i1 M
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Coun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point.
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The draft budget does not come out until November.
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"I'm not looking for a major increase next year, at least not too much more than we've already approved for this year," Hayter said. ; C! a- b$ I" t# C$ W
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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. 1 Y& `& b( m ^+ F
a3 U- f* A1 R3 S; f2 \However, he said there aren't really any city programs that could be cut in order to save a few bucks. ) l; z- P. e+ ^3 x& u" s8 f
+ F5 h, g% W: V0 p3 q2 s$ u"We've certainly got more demands," Maurer said, noting council still has to find money to fund an improved snow-clearing program. ( D; N! ~. h P. T4 d& d5 K( J' d
* r: ^ k. N* M: z1 Q+ d9 QScott Hennig, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said there's no excuse for a double-digit tax increase. ! a; z" b1 L* }0 n' d, t8 i
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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. & J' n- ?/ Y9 @( I& y$ V ?
3 W6 D$ e8 s1 P"They're going to hear from a lot of angry taxpayers if they're looking at 10%," Hennig said. . D6 q: [; b& [* ^. ]: Z/ M- X
% \" p& N' x2 X# N/ W, E8 T"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." & k1 U7 e9 c0 o
* L1 i+ H$ E9 h1 @, S r- BThe average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said.
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The 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. ; B3 R) q$ x" V; Z2 B, \
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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
