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Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike
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; u& S- h/ O+ C& ZThink 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. ( [! e- c5 z4 I! s5 t( @% s' T
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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. ( x/ H/ j0 m9 f
8 Z4 m0 W0 C( C% E"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
( \2 C* b( O1 D1 D1 {"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said.
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* D! y: X; O) e" h) M1 @A hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year.
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9 m, K+ @5 S& g, B8 }"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel.
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Coun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point.
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8 P- c$ W3 F2 z" K8 F0 A; KThe 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. % t' n, O) v8 O# g1 B# e
! b+ {, M2 ]5 s# }0 E' D4 u q"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out."
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Maurer said income from investments and various financial strategies could offset a large hike. ) F- A: x" r" Q/ g- J
6 }# ?# ?, i" ?8 L# KHowever, he said there aren't really any city programs that could be cut in order to save a few bucks.
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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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, j. p* }0 a* C0 t `, u$ u- |Scott Hennig, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said there's no excuse for a double-digit tax increase. + @8 Q/ F# v: z$ @. a
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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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# d8 q: {/ d7 f& V$ H; j"They're going to hear from a lot of angry taxpayers if they're looking at 10%," Hennig said. : x8 ~: }. z& } Y' ]5 B
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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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; C; W3 E" a. B ?2 x/ w: UThe average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said. * C) r* p0 |7 c
5 j8 L. O7 ?% }# T5 V; y1 u- g: n. nThe 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. : _3 X }. v v' h, A, t$ L
1 Y" a; I& u0 eTax 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
