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Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike
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# c% Z7 h1 Z3 p" o# {Think your property taxes are high now? You ain't seen nothing yet. / V2 s9 }9 l# _. k! y5 A) k* J: z
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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. 5 H1 a. i( y6 V/ ]9 S
6 ?- j8 N, c0 `( qMandel 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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2 m# [5 d3 a8 Q- M4 U* b( w"Looking at this we're talking an 8-10% tax increase," Mandel said in council chambers. : h' s+ D" w. e7 Z- {# l" F% T* R
0 o7 j" B9 L' Y% c b+ a7 h9 v- PCity manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates) e6 A2 e' x1 J, s! K1 @! T
"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said. % _; T/ q! m9 s! q
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A hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year. ' o6 w* E1 Y) Q+ F) X3 k" {
8 P/ @" b) t! T2 l9 q: H; I o"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel.
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$ `1 D: P6 r! s$ ]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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The draft budget does not come out until November. 1 G. p" r% X. i+ {
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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. ! d) {; l0 E& x9 E! f( U
1 v) b( [# q# o# s- o# F"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. ( V7 c$ l. B7 t- ^. W+ D
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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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0 f( t7 y; E4 }. g( g1 e! }% uScott Hennig, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said there's no excuse for a double-digit tax increase. ( f* P4 D4 W5 I7 _; y9 R
( F3 d2 U0 Y( X" ^, N4 B6 [He 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. 2 b( v, G1 J7 A+ u
- ?6 i5 _' W% O" V7 V% G. D"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 `; r" V# f; O& Z
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The average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said. & v- K$ J& [/ n, t4 n7 c7 p
: B {* R- v8 j1 Q( Q: F M) LThe 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. $ [6 e1 ~* m( N+ ]3 z) p
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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
