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Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike) O7 J5 g# O# Q' ?
8 p0 _+ Y _3 b. w' t4 fThink your property taxes are high now? You ain't seen nothing yet.
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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.
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2 R% y# Z5 y/ t+ l: nMandel 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. 1 G# {! R( z7 _+ _0 }' o6 e
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"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
% w+ [ l: X8 U"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 $200 a year. 1 ~6 R& U0 y$ Z: ~$ D
$ Y! Y+ u- Y6 C) L"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. , h2 s2 w a5 n0 `" ^
* _0 j- K9 ~( |) R4 hCoun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point. 7 g& b+ {+ g7 g3 z ]( L
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The draft budget does not come out until November. $ f H: \) [% x
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"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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"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out." , B0 N. g: w/ ~& r
: m- L3 F' L5 O" @6 VMaurer 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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, K, s4 I/ D# 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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5 w/ Y, v/ V2 p! n* kScott 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.
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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." 5 k' H# b5 C/ ~$ o$ p) ~
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The average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said.
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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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8 T) x0 R* l: x+ R0 [2 STax 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
