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Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike! k J1 k$ E" m8 t
" ?1 g3 K8 B) a2 z* s7 y$ tThink 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. 8 G- }' n$ L- k: c( w
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"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 estimates
! @/ J, G, k2 S' y"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said.
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A hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year. 9 t0 a" J9 X0 a7 Q
. X$ s; O& V# j! o1 }"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. 0 ^! B" v' ~6 G" v) e, v! V
: I- ]: Q1 I- g+ }+ K% S. Y- fCoun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point. : ^' Y9 N% W, s8 D, V$ L9 e- R+ x
5 ?5 w2 [4 F1 A) lThe draft budget does not come out until November. % [/ O* w9 j3 c7 n1 G" p1 Z- Q
' O% m) {/ c$ f4 i2 w, H$ F"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. ! D! u, }7 T) O9 Q6 Y
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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.
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. E/ {* n6 v. {# gHowever, he said there aren't really any city programs that could be cut in order to save a few bucks.
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3 H, v# U) ]8 V' \* Z9 Y# E5 `: Z"We've certainly got more demands," Maurer said, noting council still has to find money to fund an improved snow-clearing program. ( O" a" T+ `2 X5 L/ K
* K: o M7 e% g) W5 {Scott Hennig, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said there's no excuse for a double-digit tax increase.
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: N* _1 \/ A% }; Z, s, \% x$ PHe said hikes should be limited to inflation, which is pegged at 5% both this year and next, according to the city.
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"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." 5 m- B" e* G7 ^! U6 } L
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The average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said. . `2 A4 n8 i& W# I9 g
: E) \! `2 d% y- E* `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.
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( g! a% e5 p& H. }! Y% B0 c$ zTax 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
