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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. . ~8 K4 A8 B5 M1 X+ k3 P1 ?! \
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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. H1 F( r0 u* \( x' d3 v! O3 }
& [ L/ I( O2 M2 s/ B$ U. lMandel 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. * r6 b$ U) q' F% [, d
2 ]+ I9 }. o K9 _2 o7 X"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
- z9 S( }2 A2 l* m"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said. " o1 Y; R: _" V! Y
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A hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year. 5 M) m# E# z! Q- Y3 V' h
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"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel.
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Coun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point. ! v+ t( j9 u- s, Q, Z% W
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The draft budget does not come out until November. 9 G" Z5 s* M0 W
; A" c/ v8 S% j"I'm not looking for a major increase next year, at least not too much more than we've already approved for this year," Hayter said.
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3 S) Y+ M. |" P Y$ b"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out." 2 r/ D, @" \9 n
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Maurer said income from investments and various financial strategies could offset a large hike. 1 k1 Y/ p" R/ ^! L7 t
/ `; i( T. T$ p+ GHowever, he said there aren't really any city programs that could be cut in order to save a few bucks. 0 L) C- }% @$ a4 X; b3 d/ R& l8 X' k
6 F7 T6 r9 f( B C g/ k4 c( 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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" V6 a# R$ `% o6 JScott Hennig, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said there's no excuse for a double-digit tax increase.
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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.
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( ?6 ~. g& e; l& T1 R+ e$ Z/ \; u"They're going to hear from a lot of angry taxpayers if they're looking at 10%," Hennig said. % h3 q; R7 c$ C. C. G4 U
6 a# B0 C& _* ^"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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# T8 ?! F+ x6 y: Y; V! KThe average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said. # Q/ Y, F/ X/ }: O# U+ N) J, S
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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. ( L0 |/ z* D6 s% ^9 _
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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
