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Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike5 L0 i$ }! K7 P& a
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Think 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. " R( S: ]6 S+ ~, 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. / q; b; w7 w: k8 }" q) d
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"Looking at this we're talking an 8-10% tax increase," Mandel said in council chambers.
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$ D$ g+ l( x* R4 B$ WCity manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates
( p1 c6 t* o$ G5 V1 [1 a"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said.
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; M, M5 p! U% f8 gA hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year.
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"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel.
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2 l" _4 Q4 X: j& h6 d$ u+ fCoun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point. 3 l; y. K5 r) P) u5 Z6 ~+ q& Y
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The draft budget does not come out until November. : d, Q; q. ^9 ?# a% i- ]
- r. W5 A7 d" o! G) V W, I"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. ( `) b4 [/ T3 e6 }; V5 _7 Y3 z5 f7 [
* S) V# k! B8 `9 N: S3 j& g6 X+ }"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out." $ ]% p6 f( j7 q' E
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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. $ l2 s+ m* x8 f, d3 i. q
, }* p& R! P0 I8 X) _"We've certainly got more demands," Maurer said, noting council still has to find money to fund an improved snow-clearing program. $ T" u9 S" j9 y/ Z* K9 P
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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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& P! M, u h4 {! P, z4 V' AHe 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 T$ O, M; G1 K. m7 {"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."
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+ R- A2 p1 R( R2 t2 c; RThe average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said. . i* n- H1 B; |6 T, t$ Y
0 e9 P/ v& f6 q; b9 A( |. BThe 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. ; x, y' I- c) Q) @" u! ?- ]
: c+ y9 k) i' V/ J! L4 mTax 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
