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Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike5 K. [# d5 }! E! v# I
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Think your property taxes are high now? You ain't seen nothing yet.
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& ^4 ]# u( n, |2 Y% d o7 oEdmontonians 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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) f& V! d# n! S1 x, ^& EMandel 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. / c T5 U/ F# X% Z, l
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City manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates
4 ]# H6 @8 h+ L"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said.
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2 a7 g4 w& T5 `; NA hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year. ! y* I3 O/ z( h# ^4 M" X( ~ S
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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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/ i# q9 k& z4 _. mCoun. 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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& ]" d6 n2 B2 r# {The draft budget does not come out until November.
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2 H ^0 Z3 Z/ b: Y9 x* A"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.
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# }6 D3 C5 @# `: k @1 l9 y+ y0 W"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out."
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+ \+ m: L1 ?" o6 c6 `Maurer said income from investments and various financial strategies could offset a large hike. $ V( U5 s. k% h2 K6 O
" d" c5 @; ^2 ~. u1 i/ i+ `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. 5 o" C; r+ w) }6 k' J
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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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He said hikes should be limited to inflation, which is pegged at 5% both this year and next, according to the city. 7 H( z6 f$ T3 S" ]& i( T4 o
3 C7 U/ g0 ^$ K$ I"They're going to hear from a lot of angry taxpayers if they're looking at 10%," Hennig said.
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2 w0 g6 m; b5 B4 [! H7 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." 8 ~& r' x& l9 S4 K, w5 X4 _; }& J
& J5 z, H% f% K+ y: CThe average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said. / H1 Y/ d% y- \1 M
3 O `( a9 i, @. _: K6 }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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9 t$ D; o9 R2 K- Q( ]1 ITax 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
