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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.
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, i( ^# E# j, F5 o) }* y) E# dEdmontonians 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. ! J! @( q# _ P
: X, i. d g1 V+ d) H' `"Looking at this we're talking an 8-10% tax increase," Mandel said in council chambers.
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City manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates% z' A+ ^- l2 F! c2 T9 f
"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said. 2 |. \( S+ g) }. S
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A hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year. , Z0 ?3 E. C5 y
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"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel.
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Coun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point.
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; ]- J9 @9 z( L0 P/ E Z7 c, WThe draft budget does not come out until November. ; w' o/ G9 g% z# H0 e% _( a, `6 t
& O0 R: c% g+ j! o5 s"I'm not looking for a major increase next year, at least not too much more than we've already approved for this year," Hayter said.
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+ `2 K$ I) ]# x" [2 o- v6 ?"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out." 8 }+ X* L+ T$ q! g
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Maurer said income from investments and various financial strategies could offset a large hike. / h" ^0 V# g7 l; ~( s v: y
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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. ! A; w# D$ W/ ^+ n: }3 M% c( c
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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. 4 M$ y$ P' w' K% I* {9 u; ~8 w
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Scott Hennig, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said there's no excuse for a double-digit tax increase. 3 Z) [; w' T. E" w' B3 z! ^0 [
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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. 1 i" g, D$ P+ u* }; ~6 U
5 R9 X, _: k2 f. k1 \& P7 p/ w"They're going to hear from a lot of angry taxpayers if they're looking at 10%," Hennig said. ( _% L# U& t" K0 K5 D! e; B
* n+ j( Q' C. n0 t4 A"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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The average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said. " V/ @5 @) X( I) V* I: @
4 W( O0 \4 ?7 w* P; n- 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. f% ]/ k, y' m* I! I
$ E$ a7 j* S: ], a6 Q qTax 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
