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Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike5 h/ e. T" p$ [, \! E2 ^# I! {1 K" L7 a; ~/ ~
4 [: {- G( z- ^: z& tThink your property taxes are high now? You ain't seen nothing yet. 7 i. R) P5 a+ l, B0 P
5 W0 C% o! ?0 U! p: H% JEdmontonians 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 s! ^8 h1 @5 A9 N% ^
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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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"Looking at this we're talking an 8-10% tax increase," Mandel said in council chambers. - i! O: S- W- F/ \/ g; c4 K
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City manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates
0 T( Q* e9 w8 m7 N8 O2 d"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said. . `2 P7 X5 C! T3 A: A% ?+ {8 K
% p4 e4 ?9 e+ PA hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year.
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8 A4 e ?4 I; I; H+ R5 H' _"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel. : q7 E: @, D8 L# E
, [; d# y! w7 ~! L2 j) ^Coun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point.
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# @% S8 z4 g# J5 C7 FThe draft budget does not come out until November. / v2 G2 h# e" n( |& y# a+ z
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"I'm not looking for a major increase next year, at least not too much more than we've already approved for this year," Hayter said.
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"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out."
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Maurer said income from investments and various financial strategies could offset a large hike. 7 X3 j e$ r! x) U* L
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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.
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+ U4 a, }6 g3 i; w& M) ?1 J"We've certainly got more demands," Maurer said, noting council still has to find money to fund an improved snow-clearing program. ) |* n- P3 X/ q( _3 l; T
3 e+ o/ }3 m) Z& hScott Hennig, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said there's no excuse for a double-digit tax increase. ( g. I: g* \ J* Q$ Y* N
7 C- s" B% D' O- l6 o7 QHe 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."
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6 k" P# f1 b3 U$ j4 _The average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said.
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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.
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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
