 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
|
Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike1 m4 s& ^' B& \ A2 F1 N
' i9 D1 O1 U: T' Q
Think your property taxes are high now? You ain't seen nothing yet. / I: U& \8 S2 p1 S. ]
. [% R% N1 Z) m$ `3 U) h6 EEdmontonians 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. p8 x* |2 l$ s/ s) E& c4 L8 y' H3 n
- a1 K( z! Z- [7 k7 X" b' L2 _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 n2 P7 [8 n9 h' {# [1 Z, s( P
! r: E! |: F0 [; H8 i/ D"Looking at this we're talking an 8-10% tax increase," Mandel said in council chambers.
( T" \ K+ O' p2 ~7 ]- I; N4 i h9 i0 z
City manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates5 ^$ Z- r; ~( t
"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said.
+ {% ~+ q1 A0 K- C9 C
0 ]; t2 U3 u$ C8 K2 Y& p" a% PA hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year. 2 {$ u+ R0 T2 l8 M# q+ z0 |0 }
4 Y* [5 a% C7 C- U0 E/ {: b0 Y
"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. ( p p. b- ]( x! t% C( O! x
( l3 n/ }7 G. T) _Coun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point.
7 r5 U! @6 ]/ q: o3 V" |1 A# X' q+ p2 u4 G, c( |! ^
The draft budget does not come out until November.
' T; |, t* x$ h7 V3 t% m2 F. H' q5 Z0 A% T
"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. & H* a, g# H. w
. ~& j! @. Z; ]8 R8 N: {
"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out."
5 b; F, T' L9 v# a
& X0 z+ f$ }( m% o7 B0 V5 o: `) UMaurer said income from investments and various financial strategies could offset a large hike. . g& i6 P5 k2 j% d
2 U I: G- m# YHowever, he said there aren't really any city programs that could be cut in order to save a few bucks. + O0 B! z' Z2 ]1 z6 G9 f
" X0 e* G9 ]' [. r4 s) @
"We've certainly got more demands," Maurer said, noting council still has to find money to fund an improved snow-clearing program. 8 B. o# l# o: w( L
8 r$ |$ o% A6 b* p* T
Scott Hennig, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said there's no excuse for a double-digit tax increase. ' G! V, J5 x4 G; H# z' `
& b" Y' R$ H! K& k, d' G9 {; v2 |He said hikes should be limited to inflation, which is pegged at 5% both this year and next, according to the city. 6 y' s: t' k" o( z& v0 f6 U
0 @1 W9 |+ s* f) G"They're going to hear from a lot of angry taxpayers if they're looking at 10%," Hennig said.
) [: e/ p( C2 H! B/ H
, A& [9 i: J5 h: }9 o"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."
- m2 ^: W; k5 W- G1 @1 f% `& u) U3 b! c& n) ?
The average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said. - d7 h; H& V2 ~+ D3 _
4 {- W0 P i% }8 lThe 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. ! E! e: f- x" w
2 D; U' x5 W# e R- x) n/ VTax bills will be mailed May 25 and payments are due June 30. |
|
狗仔卡
发表于 2007-5-9 22:25
提升卡
置顶卡
沉默卡
喧嚣卡
变色卡
显身卡
发表于 2007-5-10 11:37
