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Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike
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Think your property taxes are high now? You ain't seen nothing yet. * H. ]7 m' I; t3 a2 ^
0 x; x- T* d* a+ K/ X) G/ B; 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. ' Z! V4 v4 G, w2 }0 I$ Z4 t% l
) n" L6 k* i7 e) @0 e9 M! C! Z4 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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: s) W3 M% X( ~) i/ _"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
4 m. I+ Z* L- i+ a+ x L0 T"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said.
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7 i W; f$ |- g. k1 ]A hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year.
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"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel. 5 H. x( a, P2 |9 {0 s+ I3 r
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Coun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point. " d" U$ V# ^2 R
' W6 k5 h/ [$ ?. C, W& n* K5 pThe draft budget does not come out until November. : G) k. F( ~5 K0 A( \
. c$ L$ A$ s9 ]"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. % n* P( F" l2 ?& K
8 ?7 s3 ?+ u1 \! e"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out."
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* C6 V: r2 S9 T& qMaurer said income from investments and various financial strategies could offset a large hike. - }/ ?! m; S3 S9 v9 G! L$ u) B, B
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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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1 w: J; q- d+ J: y' r* x' A1 f"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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1 h0 v7 ?) T5 |9 _7 q, z p' O8 SScott Hennig, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said there's no excuse for a double-digit tax increase. ; n& c4 N# W0 l& X* `
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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. # R, e) ~" z+ d
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"They're going to hear from a lot of angry taxpayers if they're looking at 10%," Hennig said. D/ y1 I$ m4 j a# y
2 a! {; u& B7 _* [" r"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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! V# o* U) ]+ g, UThe 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
