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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. + e( p7 @3 H7 w
0 r; v& M @& GEdmontonians 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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: v# T" j6 P$ E! T* JMandel 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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9 o7 h7 C2 @1 F! e. D" i+ ^"Looking at this we're talking an 8-10% tax increase," Mandel said in council chambers. 5 S$ g9 V% g9 Q+ ^& g- f# }% n2 [
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City manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates, s7 ^- E/ N3 l7 l: B
"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said.
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& H/ i1 h8 t! F( K7 ~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.
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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. % R! s6 F+ G( v) q
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The draft budget does not come out until November.
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8 F2 F* Y6 c) N4 }) M% }"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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: M1 T u# L3 F0 W* @2 ["It won't be as bad as some people are making it out." 3 C _% j N n2 Y: e
* w7 I( v) |2 r9 j8 iMaurer said income from investments and various financial strategies could offset a large hike. * |) A. R2 i' ?) `; i3 q- f
0 X) k2 |# K; H) z0 V2 Y# d" ~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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: G2 }( T6 i- P. W"We've certainly got more demands," Maurer said, noting council still has to find money to fund an improved snow-clearing program. 2 u5 k( g6 p: }5 s4 E
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Scott Hennig, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said there's no excuse for a double-digit tax increase. / ~( e) E& L' \1 u( B" k& g5 w8 q, u
! f: u ]& F G" tHe 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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" \' b1 W% T+ E0 [" r"They're going to hear from a lot of angry taxpayers if they're looking at 10%," Hennig said. 6 u0 L3 T. R5 u: B' }. v
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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." . d! K6 V, N7 x1 q
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The average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said. 2 m4 T4 u8 W, ~$ X( R9 ^ Y
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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
