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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.
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. h( [% n1 r) t# C- @- aEdmontonians 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. 7 B- n: o9 ^# A l! U
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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. / C3 y$ |; N1 _" S
( h, ~( R- X2 h"Looking at this we're talking an 8-10% tax increase," Mandel said in council chambers. 1 z. v5 r. d% }
$ r- E- r8 c2 Q2 o9 sCity manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates
/ g; I1 s" B+ ]( c"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said.
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' R' w9 r, c/ N2 `A hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year. ( i8 v" N( E) q$ m" B8 k8 i4 `
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"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. ' C- y R0 L/ C- o
* Q! s+ c0 j, D1 ~Coun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point. 5 v- g6 ^! l3 ]. Z N) i) p
7 k0 L$ ~" |0 p, ~+ PThe draft budget does not come out until November. 4 T; ?% n/ N7 ~2 S8 M
% n6 y5 M4 D- H1 {"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. . n* G) ^( U% q( r
* a2 g+ |% T) O$ a2 B2 ~/ Q8 ?: d* |( z"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.
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However, he said there aren't really any city programs that could be cut in order to save a few bucks. * H( v2 l$ Y7 u5 {8 W- 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. 8 A: K( s+ Z) u- I7 t/ l
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Scott Hennig, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said there's no excuse for a double-digit tax increase.
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3 E2 V; w! }' u8 bHe said hikes should be limited to inflation, which is pegged at 5% both this year and next, according to the city. 6 E3 R. @& L- J/ u9 J) k
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"They're going to hear from a lot of angry taxpayers if they're looking at 10%," Hennig said. 0 G; r2 K3 Q w3 g" n5 B
4 R0 q* F5 K- G# h8 l1 e1 A"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." " [/ J; \: O% h) H0 s$ H0 z
6 U4 L- o! z" t+ F- h0 MThe average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said. ' d6 B) m5 ?& `0 P6 h v
" |: X9 L- h# [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. . s3 i# T" K5 L6 v
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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
