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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. + f5 I& V2 N; a, m% S
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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. 8 X2 r( {( o6 ~1 e( I9 r
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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.
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" R6 j, K5 t9 YCity manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates8 m* ^) i! `% r. i
"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said. ; F: ^- q7 X, s
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A hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year.
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"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel.
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Coun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point. 5 D2 P8 w& W' a0 M/ G7 n
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The draft budget does not come out until November.
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"I'm not looking for a major increase next year, at least not too much more than we've already approved for this year," Hayter said. b( f! l+ h3 _% V* |
1 t$ F% r8 w1 B0 T"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out."
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6 L% N) E$ p# u" z. o( A% j- oMaurer said income from investments and various financial strategies could offset a large hike.
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5 }- I4 W6 Z" q: Z- v3 o- Q+ ?However, he said there aren't really any city programs that could be cut in order to save a few bucks. 3 \ @7 u. j: p3 B0 v! ^
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"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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/ {) Q% M3 p3 _5 w' F% lScott Hennig, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said there's no excuse for a double-digit tax increase.
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0 X1 v- c' a- |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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' H2 j( G0 {9 J0 _$ L$ `2 c) R"They're going to hear from a lot of angry taxpayers if they're looking at 10%," Hennig said.
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9 ]' @7 C- W- B"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." 6 c. P4 H: D* D3 \- q; R9 k
: L f! _7 @- T# y; oThe average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said. , n( q0 E$ N+ W7 L: A8 U& f: N
; I. r3 D) u" `4 |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. . k/ ]+ T& Y" j. X3 c
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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
