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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. ; R% Y0 K# u- [3 e( ~3 F1 Y
) b' [5 L, N% t' k9 BEdmontonians 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.
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"Looking at this we're talking an 8-10% tax increase," Mandel said in council chambers. , z. c$ L9 B) R" N( a
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City manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates. v/ T9 q9 G& t& [% m l
"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said.
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A hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year.
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2 U; t+ m& ]# c"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel. 3 M* B7 L' L) n4 ?7 R1 s" r% M! E# v
- f9 u( L. _1 D3 P) PCoun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point.
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The draft budget does not come out until November.
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+ A: n$ ]; l) I- S7 S$ U"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. # @, m* r5 d- r0 U) j& c
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"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out." " F" `# [4 \9 \
1 r6 ~; F8 i7 [- K7 A$ g6 @Maurer said income from investments and various financial strategies could offset a large hike. " E8 \* v& t0 j- W0 a1 |
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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. ( t4 J; b+ I. i
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Scott Hennig, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said there's no excuse for a double-digit tax increase. ' R2 A- q0 N7 n1 p! [7 S
9 B1 O2 t9 H8 Y* i# m4 a* ~- i. F4 dHe 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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"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." , ]! ^$ d6 I0 K7 i# R
8 E! M4 o* v0 I6 f8 p `: ]The average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said. # b2 Y9 R: Y+ G# L. h
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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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2 T8 E* ?7 i3 p, u. `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
