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Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike
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& a- H+ g$ s; y9 J2 K% WThink your property taxes are high now? You ain't seen nothing yet. 2 o1 F6 t% \& C8 B. O) `3 ^
' G( `/ X# {$ ` _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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"Looking at this we're talking an 8-10% tax increase," Mandel said in council chambers. 2 Q- a2 Z" Q. y6 e$ w
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City manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates
- C n1 h! f! [. t"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said. 9 M% z+ t z! m: s
# o2 C0 C$ K; @) _$ KA hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year.
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* b- F0 q0 _: k6 O' W7 ~# T0 a"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel.
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0 B: Y. a( m( d& m" s& o7 TCoun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point. 8 v# l3 E% I" M- Y/ X
% Z0 E1 q" _6 Z( l* sThe draft budget does not come out until November. 7 j& c! `, \/ K, [
9 [7 V9 a. ^: D8 S% O"I'm not looking for a major increase next year, at least not too much more than we've already approved for this year," Hayter said. % c* e) r' b# v8 S- |
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"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out." 1 Y5 n) h* P" u8 P- j6 E
8 i. z! d( ]7 A) H, ~: gMaurer said income from investments and various financial strategies could offset a large hike.
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) ]# {& {8 r; E% J4 tHowever, he said there aren't really any city programs that could be cut in order to save a few bucks. 3 d/ @! E, S& m2 D- A3 M; d c. B
0 _; _* b5 H8 d- b; C"We've certainly got more demands," Maurer said, noting council still has to find money to fund an improved snow-clearing program.
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0 x- |" Z# [$ f5 C2 b* WScott Hennig, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said there's no excuse for a double-digit tax increase. ) a, p, S$ b8 b7 j' P2 k+ Y
- ^$ E* t% x$ [* L! }, u+ u5 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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; y8 T# ~+ Q) k- |9 l0 _8 G"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." + S4 I' W; u' d. G- }
/ v1 ?, \* e9 _# DThe average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said. ) }3 U# m$ Z7 E8 i
" G' o- H W3 T3 y- MThe 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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6 Z- R: v5 s+ ]- oTax 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
