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Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike, Z3 \. c8 u4 ~
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Think your property taxes are high now? You ain't seen nothing yet. $ R9 h G0 d' \
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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.
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/ Z x7 i( R' {"Looking at this we're talking an 8-10% tax increase," Mandel said in council chambers. & Y! {+ y! f) _' `
h; J( t5 c8 B1 X; ]% oCity manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates
' F' d4 b/ u+ u6 f' h"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 $200 a year. 9 R" ?. v% L# m0 {2 M I0 y ^
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"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel. 0 Z; m% q) W# ]6 z" E, ?
' |4 ?* O+ a- a# MCoun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point.
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The draft budget does not come out until November.
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"I'm not looking for a major increase next year, at least not too much more than we've already approved for this year," Hayter said. 0 R: B; h! Y l- B
, n* U( K' y* w"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out." ! p! {* Z1 l8 |& D% n
) {6 \& m" ^4 `0 y) T& `Maurer said income from investments and various financial strategies could offset a large hike.
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However, he said there aren't really any city programs that could be cut in order to save a few bucks.
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/ O( D |! q6 i7 {3 y5 h% ]$ V"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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He said hikes should be limited to inflation, which is pegged at 5% both this year and next, according to the city.
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"They're going to hear from a lot of angry taxpayers if they're looking at 10%," Hennig said. - a: y }/ d+ i" o H( _
2 j, e0 j+ ^* X" w" d"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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The average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said.
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9 g8 M! i& i0 e( m. y7 JThe 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
