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Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike8 I; @$ I8 f7 G! k; u
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Think your property taxes are high now? You ain't seen nothing yet. ; X; f/ q" k3 Y6 y; K$ _
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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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6 c% ^& V! D$ z- s" ZMandel 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. ( V; v D, J9 U$ p$ T
: a$ k$ N; a$ @"Looking at this we're talking an 8-10% tax increase," Mandel said in council chambers. " H/ M% ^8 X1 j+ ~8 _# `9 H1 G
6 g: |, }" T% X& x3 s R! Q! C/ wCity manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates1 q: ^0 Q+ r a. f3 |
"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 $200 a year.
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: q0 E3 D# r; A( d! f' ~# y"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel. # ?' e$ U3 S8 v, k: f
1 ~2 u' X5 t6 F2 j5 ?% kCoun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point. ; O( A) U$ D" A- P R8 r2 D! k9 q
) \& N9 `* f8 f5 j0 K1 KThe draft budget does not come out until November. ( _ T7 L1 V1 r/ E/ \6 {
# }2 t0 x& Y5 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. X0 p( d2 y# W+ m- a+ G
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"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. " t+ a7 S% T0 S/ y! d4 `0 p& a
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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. 5 e8 H& N0 S0 I6 _% G% |
$ M+ m! h3 P5 [7 x3 i"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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, K3 S. ^, I- IScott Hennig, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said there's no excuse for a double-digit tax increase.
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0 X0 Q" p" [" e, B- Y, rHe said hikes should be limited to inflation, which is pegged at 5% both this year and next, according to the city. 8 G/ I" `3 a2 a' j
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"They're going to hear from a lot of angry taxpayers if they're looking at 10%," Hennig said. ) E& k9 ?* ^+ `6 c. |3 |9 S, |- Q
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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." 3 w8 O. T1 K; l
, i, g' D: ~! i9 m: c5 n2 e' bThe 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. ! b* q4 E8 h7 a& N# \! M% V
- [" t. F/ t5 m- {8 bTax 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
