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Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike8 f( q, X7 |8 L, ^4 M( T
$ O' u% y: V5 |, N1 KThink your property taxes are high now? You ain't seen nothing yet.
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% M& d. m. ~! X+ eEdmontonians 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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- V9 N5 g9 `* ? a4 W$ j* nMandel 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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) h7 N) z9 m) b/ Q& {% m X/ H"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) z; S, g' O& n' o: T
"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said.
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8 f& ^$ s, |* K, RA hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year.
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# M! J% s z5 o# L7 i: N"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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0 N& i7 P0 {: p6 B7 }" k/ v3 [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.
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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. $ n3 ^+ z3 C& _0 \3 n
; L2 {2 {1 @0 A* ?"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. . C- |7 W9 z6 u
& P) G: G# @# u2 j* C0 ~! P6 g7 `9 yHowever, he said there aren't really any city programs that could be cut in order to save a few bucks. 9 D! b( {5 C9 d) U* f7 e
- u7 _. t2 f8 v: A"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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/ A' g. u3 w, M) t, Z4 T0 N# y# UScott Hennig, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said there's no excuse for a double-digit tax increase. . U+ w' X0 H: T7 q: M; L8 R
: p# ?6 g7 F; Y) A; u0 K% rHe 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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- g; K# g$ j. e1 i* f, `& r"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." ) ~7 x+ b% D6 I) Q% H
+ ^# P/ l- Q$ _: v/ i6 IThe average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said.
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0 L" }0 e: Y8 x! R7 z1 dThe 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. $ u) u5 ~8 _* ~+ [
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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
