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Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike- P9 ~, n& o4 D* M5 J. s$ Q/ a
1 |4 F7 q" J6 \1 LThink your property taxes are high now? You ain't seen nothing yet.
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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. ( z, ^" a5 R# |2 {
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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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8 b; N6 b* H, O. {"Looking at this we're talking an 8-10% tax increase," Mandel said in council chambers. , h9 [6 z# _2 U! j; f. Q
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City manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates
0 M9 G: p; y1 f5 I( p' \"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said.
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% Q8 o7 w# o$ K e- FA hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year. , P- {) [& H- W: Q5 e5 {: Q( d
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"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel. 8 a8 q7 w+ P5 f- v, [. s9 Z @
; M4 T; r$ a& ^& G/ |' [1 BCoun. 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 m! S* l' g ~) e' ]The draft budget does not come out until November.
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* Y' @6 S' Q7 B"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. $ T. o1 f- r% y9 c" h9 h& g
: x |/ c& V6 \% J& D. F"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out." - t) @4 ]& H. r6 [
- Q A7 N" _/ e" r' \Maurer said income from investments and various financial strategies could offset a large hike. & t/ ]; Y/ P# g a6 \7 ^
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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. ) L9 h4 C7 K* j1 L
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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' y0 S/ Z* {9 O E
+ G, q& X7 Q& K" V; \+ h8 IScott Hennig, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said there's no excuse for a double-digit tax increase.
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1 z) k) A) z9 x& R. h& n# h* ?! iHe 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. / ~" f9 M/ S) q3 ]- M
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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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$ c8 \6 R0 E( i8 @The average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said.
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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
