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Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike
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/ t, u$ g: ^) F4 q0 mThink your property taxes are high now? You ain't seen nothing yet.
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2 X7 B5 E! e" B5 O0 Q9 P/ }$ fEdmontonians 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. ( @: f+ [$ J: s0 X+ m& ~1 |
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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. ' ?. Q& `- X, k! J5 }5 o2 W3 B
- O! @% f' r6 a& c& |0 ~"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! [/ _% S6 V% y; R) J
"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said.
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7 Z6 y/ M" I; c* V. e8 l) tA hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year. 9 h4 [2 B- A0 K, r0 g# a! e
+ i& g) q& y3 s"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel. 9 o3 G# p' `7 Q" P8 n$ v% _
) U; @/ e7 d6 ^1 O8 ]9 CCoun. 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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4 n: S7 T5 y) c; p$ s: x9 R1 qThe draft budget does not come out until November.
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& v; `" v0 {7 t9 h) p"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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3 r3 m- ]( f0 d0 b"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out." ; T% t- [( _9 y l
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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. 3 Y# t/ m6 Z% ~6 I. f# s2 n
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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. ; V% D2 I2 j3 n. `1 r
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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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! M# W+ o m0 h6 {0 n8 t: @"They're going to hear from a lot of angry taxpayers if they're looking at 10%," Hennig said. i# T" e6 ] o& ?
$ a; Q4 r/ r# \: w" ?; c/ X"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. 3 J5 @! G0 p/ L$ E, ]
1 c5 E! x+ Y8 J6 ?- v+ U3 T j( u1 H1 ^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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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
