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Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike
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Think your property taxes are high now? You ain't seen nothing yet. ) n4 n' R) _3 {+ G3 @4 |
" H7 z [6 P6 ~- q# XEdmontonians 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. 8 Y* `6 J4 d- A' H7 w: _" a
3 }' d! q+ V- E1 ZMandel 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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- R2 D. k6 ]' A" m! }; o. {! u/ i"Looking at this we're talking an 8-10% tax increase," Mandel said in council chambers.
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( y0 C" Y+ a- K. \5 B [6 e/ TCity manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates8 d0 x% }' ~# f; y
"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said. 1 k `- I4 x' m' B5 Z9 Y/ ^
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A 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. $ r% Y9 `& f; c: `) F
# P" G" R& s- W6 |7 B* i+ |1 dCoun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point. 1 s. R/ n, {4 [+ U
% Y- k6 D! S( kThe draft budget does not come out until November. 3 c& }% ^/ q4 M
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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. ( G3 S4 W) K% F4 D2 b E
5 U8 A5 d. a3 C4 e' }9 X# i"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out." 5 \# q% N% Z, a% P+ |4 u3 }
# z* T6 T0 [- o! JMaurer 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. 2 V+ j" q# l0 Y. b& J
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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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$ E) h) I7 c2 R! K+ d& cScott 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. 9 ~* z; m2 r% ?2 }! p( |: \
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"They're going to hear from a lot of angry taxpayers if they're looking at 10%," Hennig said. 9 {! Q. d& [* [, b5 V
) N$ g. _( ~) L/ R+ x8 ^, M" f9 |& U"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." 3 c- A2 e+ _1 M! o/ {
! [9 _* n( N+ P# Z1 d8 ]' yThe 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. % S [0 r% J9 ~% L& |" v: f
: [; W3 U# X4 W' o x; sTax 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
