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Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike" m' I9 y$ u3 |$ g+ N! y6 r9 ~
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Think your property taxes are high now? You ain't seen nothing yet. : R5 N7 {; t, W- i4 f2 b+ r0 G
: B P2 k, H1 IEdmontonians 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. - q# y& R# y I5 Y: k
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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.
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7 V H1 P" R) z' Y/ J3 U! b* L"Looking at this we're talking an 8-10% tax increase," Mandel said in council chambers. ( n+ ~: u8 j7 `
9 h' g% e+ R# A! ?# J* Y4 e+ WCity manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates1 ]6 f% { {) X u# p4 A
"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 $200 a year. ) C: @' R+ ?8 @9 r0 i: f
2 b. F& f, r0 y) x' w$ c"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. 0 P) L5 @& p( I0 c- C y: O$ d0 }
( X: O, }8 V/ uThe draft budget does not come out until November. 2 t( S) k% j3 G/ m4 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. 6 Z2 }; U/ G3 Q2 r4 t$ Y! Y, O2 p/ e
" [1 j- p1 j; R y. m6 |"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out."
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I: L/ M4 \$ a! JMaurer 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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8 k* H1 r/ Y% y# }! R"We've certainly got more demands," Maurer said, noting council still has to find money to fund an improved snow-clearing program. 3 x6 r% z F% Q: G4 d, }3 M. [8 x
5 S' U+ W/ V" |" B0 \( {( R' uScott Hennig, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said there's no excuse for a double-digit tax increase.
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' g- h- v0 x( ~9 d3 j% X: ZHe said hikes should be limited to inflation, which is pegged at 5% both this year and next, according to the city. 0 o g4 e3 T' z8 z
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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."
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5 C: w. D: G L8 MThe average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said.
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8 s G( h/ B$ E' UThe 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
