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Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike! B# l8 G8 ^# c3 e$ W& L0 y
0 ~5 F. G% S; Q0 [9 _5 MThink your property taxes are high now? You ain't seen nothing yet. + ?4 R @3 Q! c$ Z( ]
) L* F8 C3 c' ZEdmontonians 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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$ B8 a/ w8 ~! Q' D6 ^$ Z3 IMandel 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.
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% b3 h# ]0 c: V, K/ T) D5 DCity manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates
$ k$ e+ ]" a) }- y. u& {( R"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said. ) s; E0 o9 S' l3 @7 q. m
4 {* ~7 {7 U$ D7 R* GA hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year. + B& a$ c4 n2 B8 W6 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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Coun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point. ; @- \9 k# [: \1 j
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The draft budget does not come out until November. 1 Y# D8 r9 @$ v3 r6 x- l( h# q
0 q% ]& @# |5 F- 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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"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. 4 x9 g. Z. n2 |
0 ]% D+ H7 c4 \% r. `6 EHowever, 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( B0 e8 K% e# K: G) P"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.
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0 ^8 o! q2 t/ X( R5 x' wHe said hikes should be limited to inflation, which is pegged at 5% both this year and next, according to the city. & A4 q: L$ B1 i6 w
/ P+ G1 l9 k# O0 U6 w9 s"They're going to hear from a lot of angry taxpayers if they're looking at 10%," Hennig said. $ J e# X7 I" s- s T5 g3 D
$ H: C8 t; w8 v: f"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." % L% V3 Z1 [" P! X4 e
' {" P% O/ J) bThe average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said. 6 \' ~1 E3 i {* O# G' b
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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. J9 U7 a: r6 B" x/ H$ |
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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
