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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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Edmontonians 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.
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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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6 V+ W: o# b' p: x) s/ j& V: z( f"Looking at this we're talking an 8-10% tax increase," Mandel said in council chambers.
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City manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates1 b/ y" }; ?2 [) j
"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said.
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" U& a% x1 `" @A hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year. 5 h0 t; J) V5 M4 F6 }
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"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel.
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Coun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point.
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) m9 R! ]; F' e0 sThe draft budget does not come out until November.
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"I'm not looking for a major increase next year, at least not too much more than we've already approved for this year," Hayter said.
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"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out."
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. H* H( Z/ [# u; f" T; V, u T! QMaurer said income from investments and various financial strategies could offset a large hike.
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* D9 F9 V* z$ IHowever, he said there aren't really any city programs that could be cut in order to save a few bucks. 1 I/ _& o, X8 a4 C4 C
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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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Scott 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. , `% ~" V# o$ T( o) k* l
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"They're going to hear from a lot of angry taxpayers if they're looking at 10%," Hennig said. O2 _6 M- ~3 J" T
0 \8 ]6 G# s2 Y' }( l+ ["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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. I8 F9 x; Q# p* y9 z! f# [+ I1 Z& ~The average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said.
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9 ~$ h1 E' r) W) C# }/ S! AThe 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
