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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. 8 K# n; V! B6 b! I' s9 Z2 j( x
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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.
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1 {# S$ h. ?( ~. x/ F, G3 e5 |. S1 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. , \& C2 I4 h( `6 P$ e+ z
/ V8 u2 Z: O, k1 o"Looking at this we're talking an 8-10% tax increase," Mandel said in council chambers. # b& q; H& t! @
8 I- i M6 F/ R# P5 L6 rCity manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates/ Q) M8 w6 N& |- T
"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said. 8 Y; ?* _% I$ e0 C8 U) T; ~
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A hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year.
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, g8 e2 j* A% V"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel. " [ O5 d" W5 b0 x0 u
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Coun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point.
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2 I4 x" x% a+ p8 ~. FThe draft budget does not come out until November. - k/ q& i$ q2 y( k% r5 w6 B
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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. 3 s6 ^) ^ P; ?# B
- H4 p' E5 G. a+ z. }"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.
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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. 4 x. ^+ C7 Y5 j @2 z
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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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/ A5 R! l! A5 GScott 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. 1 J9 L0 J# a3 s, n( x& A2 ~: `
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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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2 c, t3 {. M$ y" \- ]: ^9 s"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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4 I% K& W2 ]. ?9 ~. {' J3 K7 w, H/ {8 lThe average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said. + x4 S) g* }$ L# r; |
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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. + j* e, U3 g) n! G! ^( g
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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
