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Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike
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) o G( z: `( }3 ?8 {Think your property taxes are high now? You ain't seen nothing yet. 4 [! B$ c& Y% G
8 Z4 M" o3 m3 yEdmontonians 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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2 v) N5 l: o; Y6 T8 C, T5 P+ E8 @. mMandel 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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2 X* u: r* {- WCity manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates
: k9 i5 b: @) {"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 $200 a year.
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! l& F1 Z( S: f2 B/ P# E% C- R"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel.
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Coun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point.
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The draft budget does not come out until November. 6 t' w4 w! h" i, u6 P+ R
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"I'm not looking for a major increase next year, at least not too much more than we've already approved for this year," Hayter said. # t9 Q! y, v/ _8 C7 j$ W
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"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out." & W2 S3 L* Y- {0 m/ w4 p5 `
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Maurer said income from investments and various financial strategies could offset a large hike.
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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. 9 K8 {( H) B2 O/ T
0 {2 T; @, P$ s8 n"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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! h3 S1 v1 A6 K) @0 u- [2 n1 dScott Hennig, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said there's no excuse for a double-digit tax increase. # X/ C- S& @+ q7 r
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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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L. q1 P4 Q- e. L `"They're going to hear from a lot of angry taxpayers if they're looking at 10%," Hennig said.
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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."
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The 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. ) N( F2 l& k2 S0 J! t
+ ~2 ` X6 h2 q2 f- ?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
