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Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike- M2 v: G4 j% z
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Think your property taxes are high now? You ain't seen nothing yet.
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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.
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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. 1 N* l8 f/ k& k$ }; @; n
- V; W. Q# o0 k"Looking at this we're talking an 8-10% tax increase," Mandel said in council chambers. ! I. L8 u. |% n
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City manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates
N$ I+ p' P& c"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said.
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A hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year.
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" ]2 e" l( k* g/ t"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel.
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Coun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point.
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The draft budget does not come out until November.
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"I'm not looking for a major increase next year, at least not too much more than we've already approved for this year," Hayter said. ]4 m( o. \; C6 U) m) T: H7 E
+ g8 X; S: a/ |+ q* G& P5 Q"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out." 0 n _! Q6 J8 q+ O5 M5 V; C
5 `/ ^- I/ q/ h- u5 x& X4 i* dMaurer said income from investments and various financial strategies could offset a large hike. ) [1 G) |, C, e
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However, he said there aren't really any city programs that could be cut in order to save a few bucks. % y$ x( o0 u0 ^' s
1 ~7 n* T3 T0 d6 ^6 U+ g"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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Scott Hennig, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said there's no excuse for a double-digit tax increase.
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& t+ F- V. d) q# c" X" ?) ?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. : }# U) I9 R6 ` M
8 D/ E' Q9 n: I+ H$ p"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 h$ d8 ?9 S& }: p! A/ J6 S
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The average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said. 9 U8 B! r6 D* S' i: @6 J0 X" F
9 j4 Y6 H& R+ c# ~1 Y) s' h/ Z2 ]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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