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Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike5 O; S1 r X' l
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Think your property taxes are high now? You ain't seen nothing yet.
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/ @0 p7 W) \$ b% NEdmontonians 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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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. / e' ^0 |5 l4 v& b. R4 E6 C0 h4 N
4 X+ J, n; U$ d$ j4 z1 G"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
7 \9 B& o' r _# h* l2 m+ j"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said. 2 x, J# {2 }% R3 b% ?: b
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A hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year.
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"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel. * f: z8 ~! I5 O
, L! | Q$ t T3 ~. lCoun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point. " b1 l g3 ^1 P5 r( E8 K+ T4 @
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The draft budget does not come out until November. & H5 @& F$ X) D
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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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, ? @( C9 B* H* e; c7 o* a+ Z1 b"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out." 4 z. q( d' e/ t: f( ?
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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.
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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. 9 h, f" Z, q t- H+ }# k' P: n
: O2 }- a' X8 XScott 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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7 F5 q# D" B5 y: f @"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." & }: J) I( v1 L! V
0 Y$ ]. {2 i- b1 ~- D2 b4 s9 sThe 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.
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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
