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Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike% h3 |! H, A- E. z& C% {1 k+ a
* o% u4 }7 p5 q1 f2 ^! T* \Think your property taxes are high now? You ain't seen nothing yet. # y5 M' Y8 B; ^% V& Z
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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. 7 W9 J9 `# `+ x$ W% b' J
7 f6 R7 O; G* @2 b, z: |4 k( @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. 7 ~' ?8 w% _/ Z
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City manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates
/ F; M8 g( n8 Y8 Z5 c"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said.
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; A& n8 Z& p2 O! KA hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year. ) l' G8 X$ |+ s0 m4 I6 J% y
$ U; k/ i" D4 M0 M* B( Y$ m, }! m"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.
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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.
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% \& i9 C) D* W: t( q" ^- ?"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out." ! A* N) O# }9 D) h) Z" v) A: T
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Maurer said income from investments and various financial strategies could offset a large hike.
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$ h/ [! P; b. q& |" B mHowever, he said there aren't really any city programs that could be cut in order to save a few bucks. ' I1 |: }& [, m' ~
* U B$ X" k" p0 g"We've certainly got more demands," Maurer said, noting council still has to find money to fund an improved snow-clearing program. ) _. n. }4 o# J
1 m5 n- m" Y# D4 S$ [Scott 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. & l7 ], H2 p+ j7 I7 y
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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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, _1 R9 `& A6 b9 a* c6 L/ iThe average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said. J! g' z, Z" Z
* V# _8 l7 b0 M# ~7 IThe 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. , j5 z( O5 s$ C# U6 s4 J' |( |
0 u5 ?% [, z, z4 O' STax 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
