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Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike
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& D" h: i3 g. t/ ~) q& t& p- OThink your property taxes are high now? You ain't seen nothing yet. ; p. a8 \/ D; ?. E
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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. 4 K6 `& y1 A6 m9 x# y7 X
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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. 7 B+ x" k/ t" [1 s3 F4 Z% u( ~
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"Looking at this we're talking an 8-10% tax increase," Mandel said in council chambers. " x! {( k8 L. R5 f; x7 {, G
6 m5 P2 ~2 n4 k9 A9 m! @City manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates h& k8 `6 h8 T
"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said.
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# k& A; D3 X- G5 Q) p [, wA hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year.
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"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel.
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h( @3 X4 c+ I! u+ |Coun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point. 2 l2 d- S1 Z, w/ d) B8 u
( M# H0 I ]" s, tThe draft budget does not come out until November.
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"I'm not looking for a major increase next year, at least not too much more than we've already approved for this year," Hayter said. ) f* ]; `, p$ }3 o/ j
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"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out."
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Maurer said income from investments and various financial strategies could offset a large hike. ' ^5 T2 Y; C/ _. R. C5 J$ w
k0 @6 F( }! {* U ]6 DHowever, he said there aren't really any city programs that could be cut in order to save a few bucks. , r& `. h- t9 u5 f
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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.
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6 f: V4 M9 l. _: L: @+ f9 CScott Hennig, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said there's no excuse for a double-digit tax increase. + m& n& N- n' } z
! a7 j& M+ \4 B0 l U- X* sHe 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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# g6 P, \& U5 Q! _4 e! x6 B"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." 1 p& |, s/ p+ d- k: B- A @
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The average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said. % B" ^; U, g7 ^5 \- @ {4 _$ |& T1 h
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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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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
