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Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike
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H4 q$ s7 R# t* KThink your property taxes are high now? You ain't seen nothing yet.
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1 N& W5 K+ z( r' mEdmontonians 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- D/ {" p7 ?8 B
4 d \; Y1 S9 ]0 o# U+ ]. @- }' A"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* M6 j# L7 y4 }( w y
"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said. & @+ ], g) P3 [
" i: A# G9 D9 V/ s! ~A hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year.
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"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel.
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Coun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point. 3 H6 K5 C- z3 r" m! n' ]7 R/ ]
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The draft budget does not come out until November. . u. M9 }! ^! ?
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"I'm not looking for a major increase next year, at least not too much more than we've already approved for this year," Hayter said. ( p- y" {) F3 G/ c1 b* u
5 V9 v4 E: n8 c& q4 b! N8 X1 Q* \$ E0 ["It won't be as bad as some people are making it out."
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: g n$ M; V" s: p; M% m6 D5 @Maurer said income from investments and various financial strategies could offset a large hike. ) D6 m/ a- _8 Q+ p& a) \( i2 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.
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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. 7 b' F: y0 n- C2 A
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Scott Hennig, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said there's no excuse for a double-digit tax increase. / {5 @0 @3 a1 \8 r6 g+ j
* W+ x$ n7 Y' W# hHe said hikes should be limited to inflation, which is pegged at 5% both this year and next, according to the city. 3 S3 @' X& a- b/ t! z! ]
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"They're going to hear from a lot of angry taxpayers if they're looking at 10%," Hennig said. 4 d7 R0 t3 p" ]- t" z
( S: l ^( z: F8 s$ S. c6 z- l# R"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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- P" ^" P; n- h( `/ hThe average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said. ; w& k# t- C6 K( ]
) q8 v% I9 q/ D Q KThe 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. 6 @1 q$ u& `' q
. K7 p P+ h# I$ F" m& fTax 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
