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Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike
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) d) w7 \8 y0 r1 B/ nThink your property taxes are high now? You ain't seen nothing yet. ) Z. e* p5 {+ F& s6 E5 e) [1 a% K
6 l- L( Q+ g) m" l! FEdmontonians 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. 4 ~( q5 v$ p, V& f, @
- L" f* r& w& H. q+ fMandel 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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5 K; B+ K0 {* J& Y# W"Looking at this we're talking an 8-10% tax increase," Mandel said in council chambers. 1 n( ~9 o9 @1 ~1 X, Z, q6 Y
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City manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates7 z$ m$ g0 `8 ^/ f
"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said.
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7 Q4 E- F2 f. |7 l4 y) z8 kA hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year.
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"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel.
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5 g* X( h) h% HCoun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point.
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The draft budget does not come out until November. . x) z# u0 h* b
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"I'm not looking for a major increase next year, at least not too much more than we've already approved for this year," Hayter said. 8 a& Z( }4 G' W+ N; B5 c
5 A- @7 c% N- }, E, ]- Q$ c"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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1 k5 d4 D w5 s7 T: x* K$ ~- y( N0 XHowever, he said there aren't really any city programs that could be cut in order to save a few bucks.
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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. 5 X1 O* N, X5 |3 k! S
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Scott Hennig, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said there's no excuse for a double-digit tax increase. 4 H( W# c" h- m: }) C
% ?. v& W' v. S, F7 W0 fHe said hikes should be limited to inflation, which is pegged at 5% both this year and next, according to the city. 2 m5 Q3 e7 C' u0 i
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"They're going to hear from a lot of angry taxpayers if they're looking at 10%," Hennig said. * U. x* ^% Z% g4 i3 @
% K |1 c0 b7 N9 Z& G1 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." 9 f4 [! i4 I- t( Z" y4 {
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The average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said. ' ~ E* e; x: ? ~6 ]
1 g5 z; F; v* I* r- rThe 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. * z9 S+ c4 U8 z, n% q
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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
