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Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike
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- I& x- D' @* ~9 R$ J6 y/ bThink your property taxes are high now? You ain't seen nothing yet.
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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. 1 W3 u. T9 c$ p/ O
% e/ u" I5 M: F+ z0 _$ qMandel 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. ; y- U: }5 b$ O, n$ r( X# j9 o
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"Looking at this we're talking an 8-10% tax increase," Mandel said in council chambers.
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( t r( l) B9 x: eCity manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates
1 W! S; \& ^, V& c" `/ `"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said. " c4 M# q: k$ X2 s' d( {
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A hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year. + F8 U4 z+ m1 ]. ~& {
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"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel. : \" F; f3 W4 T s% g1 e I
. [3 V2 R2 r. u6 ?+ X, ~5 LCoun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point. - @$ {; I/ d- `4 V5 n& l0 z
$ \, X* Y5 W) M) YThe draft budget does not come out until November. % o, e1 T2 C4 o
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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. 5 x0 h: G9 s* F; W5 K0 p0 o
. W$ e+ N, D# E, L( |"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out."
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( G7 Z( D& S$ I" T1 R' fMaurer said income from investments and various financial strategies could offset a large hike. 8 f# \! ^2 N# b3 u7 K
9 [1 M7 _ Q- m& SHowever, 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.
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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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! d3 y8 H+ I } r/ M3 |* f8 KHe 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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5 F) |$ f" O7 O1 r% ]"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." % A' m- t' n1 N5 O: G0 b9 V
1 k! a( k0 z0 }1 T, fThe 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. ) A9 f& u) a2 _" f. E& @
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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
