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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. , s- V$ V0 ^& e4 j$ `
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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. . K4 g3 H. Z, g* H! 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.
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& N# F3 k1 @! X1 h1 Q v! ~7 A: o"Looking at this we're talking an 8-10% tax increase," Mandel said in council chambers. : w* X- W1 h# e" u* z4 O1 B) t
J: H5 T# N2 w! R h+ y5 G( GCity manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates/ `# v. q, ?. O( M7 s$ Q' S B
"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said. * p. W: _3 P5 c: R
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A hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year. 2 y0 R4 \6 p8 n. @: ?& d
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"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel.
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Coun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point. ( v# H- @$ y5 |. A6 I
' ~; I! }+ _4 Q, y! N- PThe 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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"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out." 3 o: L. g2 o2 z/ H: }
$ F! E s4 W9 zMaurer said income from investments and various financial strategies could offset a large hike. ! |2 {& I" e% W" e' S+ P
9 v, z" k; {4 RHowever, he said there aren't really any city programs that could be cut in order to save a few bucks. 1 [5 t2 X9 p0 a7 |
) W( B1 I) i- J+ u2 X# e"We've certainly got more demands," Maurer said, noting council still has to find money to fund an improved snow-clearing program. * t9 ~3 `; m, Z2 O6 W y
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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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8 c8 K3 H* N: D9 i" f: t"They're going to hear from a lot of angry taxpayers if they're looking at 10%," Hennig said. 1 w" n* W) f" n( S& ?5 A
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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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9 t! H$ O0 N' r% x2 P# rThe average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said. 7 e6 y6 A. |3 W' H5 V: V2 @0 h/ |
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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.
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/ p, w; ?. Z( E& e$ i) A# g& uTax 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
