 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
|
Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike
; ? H1 L; |) i/ F; D5 K, F
% {" v( g& h9 uThink your property taxes are high now? You ain't seen nothing yet. , h4 f6 H. q* v1 P" p
: |+ ?% ^/ _0 v3 b4 e8 W/ eEdmontonians 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. 5 A2 i* c% V: T
1 w/ e" h/ b/ lMandel 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.
' X: \: [8 l6 H8 o& p! Z7 [; t' N# @0 T1 f, l8 @0 w6 [
"Looking at this we're talking an 8-10% tax increase," Mandel said in council chambers.
0 G- v, n- j/ s& `1 W3 x9 Q* e( l' _4 F/ T/ w
City manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates* F' `, i4 G) r, [! Z0 A
"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said.
2 S6 I3 a* L& v3 G/ T) p* _
1 f- A) a( ~2 @6 X5 EA hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year. & u3 T: t$ m; H7 X L* j( [, V
: N$ G/ o) y, Q. `
"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.
+ n. P4 q% a9 A- J
- M u5 G# c! O$ i/ w5 ?/ ECoun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point.
( V0 \4 E/ c1 k/ w: ~: h1 H4 O5 o2 P0 q. A' m* Z/ d
The draft budget does not come out until November. - a1 g- T* c6 F- F; P9 ^
/ U; p0 x( p4 P' W5 s y1 j7 ~
"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. . y6 f& A. n& E* p3 O- F! m
8 c" b- P5 n, u7 V
"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out." 7 y5 R* G- T0 H# Y2 _% {' N8 {
! y, P- A2 h) s( _Maurer said income from investments and various financial strategies could offset a large hike.
( q/ `7 [) A7 f7 `! K
# g" j" y) G6 _8 D/ w% |However, he said there aren't really any city programs that could be cut in order to save a few bucks. ! H' \1 n' q5 N, y9 M4 E. W
! {7 g7 r* \* m" u" d6 j, q5 }3 s' n
"We've certainly got more demands," Maurer said, noting council still has to find money to fund an improved snow-clearing program.
! n% p# q# b% m" a) d7 J$ K) h9 k3 j3 { h2 f
Scott Hennig, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said there's no excuse for a double-digit tax increase.
" h" y. U* \! b" y( Z/ j( L( G0 j4 z) X# d6 @
He said hikes should be limited to inflation, which is pegged at 5% both this year and next, according to the city. " _6 _2 m) P9 m) Z0 S: N
" p J3 I' Y7 c
"They're going to hear from a lot of angry taxpayers if they're looking at 10%," Hennig said.
* {) j0 Q5 K+ W' S9 D2 {: ^$ A. w# Z# ]$ W
"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."
1 ^2 g' @, N- `/ S* T' C% F3 W; Q$ O9 R* a2 z; N
The average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said.
: a2 Y E3 A9 l _, l$ ]
+ T$ @/ x# m* x7 hThe 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.
0 r. `+ l L# G' r2 }0 e8 d# r. v
( y& ~% L* Z3 I4 @; pTax bills will be mailed May 25 and payments are due June 30. |
|
狗仔卡
发表于 2007-5-9 22:25
提升卡
置顶卡
沉默卡
喧嚣卡
变色卡
显身卡
发表于 2007-5-10 11:37
