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Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike
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1 w5 }4 q; p' O+ w" }Think your property taxes are high now? You ain't seen nothing yet. 7 `* E5 \9 s/ a0 N" u3 I$ S
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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. . B6 p, [- @5 V1 d8 b. z! D+ i7 g! d/ D
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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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1 N; E6 q+ u/ x- l% U" Z"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& P; X# D& l/ ` j0 n
"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said. % ?! S4 A# [! X; Q
& }& C1 q; [: Q, [: CA hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year. . r) e7 K n/ |
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"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel.
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5 j" F/ r: v. u2 ~. d+ Y, nCoun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point. ; m7 m$ w7 }( @5 J% a: R
9 x% }* {/ e" ?- M" b3 \* @The draft budget does not come out until November.
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9 _1 O4 P6 r6 W3 t"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. ( ~2 L3 }1 J2 i; u
# F8 g$ P) |3 n* M9 V) F4 _0 g"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out."
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4 ?; G5 F' I, T$ }Maurer said income from investments and various financial strategies could offset a large hike.
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4 {8 _3 u) L `: i% G- L( pHowever, he said there aren't really any city programs that could be cut in order to save a few bucks.
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. q$ u k X, @. ]"We've certainly got more demands," Maurer said, noting council still has to find money to fund an improved snow-clearing program. 8 w$ P. l+ }4 N& w1 ?
. C1 Z: g3 G/ m2 uScott Hennig, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said there's no excuse for a double-digit tax increase. " K& |! _! l5 y8 d0 N) X& n
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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. $ \# i' O0 K4 N' U$ L
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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."
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& B2 e- I. _6 L; y0 \$ kThe average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said. ' i6 O; _, \. H' d4 N
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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. " _/ H0 s# l, K0 A# g- Y
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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
