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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. : G/ j g. {! }& x7 ?
5 X) _+ Q1 O9 E) qEdmontonians 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 z+ n7 H# A' U, I# P* t# _4 V
6 [# c3 m8 a8 xMandel 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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City manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates
9 n8 B7 f& W& @"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said. ! Z/ [! y: j M. x. k
& c2 ]( B, L8 S( \! HA 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. 7 C1 \8 K% V! t, N0 A
1 [+ ]' p/ ]& bCoun. 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. 9 r* ~/ |8 c+ R. z* ]
) s% k% {- w/ p& U 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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"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out."
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2 Y8 Z4 l0 x/ b1 m& kMaurer 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. ; E4 Q1 Z3 x& M+ Z. N# O( j* q; m
9 n2 `8 M/ o1 @' g) J5 W7 K"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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) a5 G& y% k/ u9 U; x3 l+ iScott 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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"They're going to hear from a lot of angry taxpayers if they're looking at 10%," Hennig said.
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8 s* Q2 A6 n* {3 a5 G# 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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The average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said. - j# u. B3 w' e1 w$ G* S. E. |; {
* \4 j& }: H1 {' I' n1 fThe 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. 1 g) l* c% r; m
& g L C; T% U8 D4 ], O" I; CTax 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
