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Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike3 u0 N; A& O- U+ s
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Think your property taxes are high now? You ain't seen nothing yet. 7 e/ y+ A+ R% I4 `
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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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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. 0 o9 S8 q, ?3 c8 U6 a
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"Looking at this we're talking an 8-10% tax increase," Mandel said in council chambers. . T/ j R3 `2 U1 T" H' {
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City manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates
3 f! c, F+ r" s"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said. 2 @' _9 X Z5 _! ]- m4 M3 ?% ]% R
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A hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year.
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" q, Y7 I% r; m2 f) H5 k"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel. 8 j0 |! Q4 z, c8 r; W% v1 p
, z& w0 S/ F: F0 \* p3 yCoun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point. . j! v) N" I' D; Y0 m7 V
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The draft budget does not come out until November. ! w( ^: H$ N) Z3 O% a7 v M s
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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."
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. W( A6 c2 }5 m2 h& {' BMaurer said income from investments and various financial strategies could offset a large hike. # p: {9 l: }3 I: V+ j" j/ X1 d9 }
3 |8 B: Q8 `7 H, H3 ^% bHowever, 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. , M. R& h6 r+ R
. d+ e8 G5 d+ Z- |* n) WScott Hennig, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said there's no excuse for a double-digit tax increase.
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: m7 L2 @% R, j7 j) r$ G4 @2 JHe said hikes should be limited to inflation, which is pegged at 5% both this year and next, according to the city. ' S- h3 F2 o& t. V5 g5 q5 o
& O9 s& K0 W2 G1 M" }$ S"They're going to hear from a lot of angry taxpayers if they're looking at 10%," Hennig said. " P" F4 q4 ]- q( V- K& H
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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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/ A3 S- C8 \0 m6 n5 A4 wThe average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said. ) [0 t5 A3 `5 b( u
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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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, Q' e" Y( ?! ? `, S, y1 rTax 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
