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Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike
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T% [6 o, O* f) v- yThink your property taxes are high now? You ain't seen nothing yet.
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( d. V9 W! H/ g: Y; f" @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. ' t( T9 E& `; c8 \3 l% W
; {6 ~4 N: t2 s9 c, @9 H) |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. : ?: s: x2 H7 P4 s1 Y8 i
, B7 P8 e K/ p6 z' W, ~! e"Looking at this we're talking an 8-10% tax increase," Mandel said in council chambers.
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1 w5 }2 C1 V6 g1 c: j8 \City manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates
3 e0 m: |+ O- Z& ]"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said. % }- ^4 R& ~7 j. d
- m% h) w; C: K" u# UA hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year. : U8 _! |. f* h
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"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel.
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4 P# H9 T2 l6 K0 YCoun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point.
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$ \& @# X) S' f& H( e8 WThe draft budget does not come out until November.
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6 p' S7 b( ^- M y( l"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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0 R: r4 x! ]$ T' x"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out."
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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.
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, E$ \- p- c$ K. ?"We've certainly got more demands," Maurer said, noting council still has to find money to fund an improved snow-clearing program.
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Scott Hennig, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said there's no excuse for a double-digit tax increase. 7 O0 m7 [7 s7 w5 O( F! }2 P5 `
# {, A5 h( B4 |5 n4 NHe said hikes should be limited to inflation, which is pegged at 5% both this year and next, according to the city. ( Y) B2 J! ]+ w7 h
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"They're going to hear from a lot of angry taxpayers if they're looking at 10%," Hennig said. 6 r! b2 S2 E. h/ x. ] H" ?
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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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The average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said. ' L- h" A/ l' }
n* ?% {# J3 ]' g. d7 QThe 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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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
