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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. & q5 Y$ g! \, Y6 R! l7 V
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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. $ j( W2 F* H# w) X& ~: r
% h9 h) g1 h" i* B7 uMandel 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.
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City manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates* T) M/ I4 {% m- M8 e$ }) E" p- a
"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said. ) }. L G' W% J. n& O
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A hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year.
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a8 p8 B2 M+ k8 u h5 ?: w"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel. / d2 d1 h g/ u8 x& V& }( k
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Coun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point. ) u0 Y9 u! H9 F* o: h
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The draft budget does not come out until November.
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"I'm not looking for a major increase next year, at least not too much more than we've already approved for this year," Hayter said.
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"It won't be as bad as some people are making it out."
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Maurer said income from investments and various financial strategies could offset a large hike. 5 q; a/ @) y2 a7 L0 [
% h7 p' Q$ @4 D% k3 B5 A# GHowever, he said there aren't really any city programs that could be cut in order to save a few bucks. ' K- c9 y! G. {* X
, s. R: ~# A& i* h" T% _"We've certainly got more demands," Maurer said, noting council still has to find money to fund an improved snow-clearing program. ! L6 B9 K+ Q4 }1 j' u1 e
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Scott Hennig, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said there's no excuse for a double-digit tax increase.
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! ?6 Z0 @, s4 ]$ O* `He 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.
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3 l" A0 G, l; K6 S"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." 8 g) b9 E; b, X
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The average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said. + [9 f) P( q' U$ o' |0 [/ \' U
+ P$ D+ T7 a3 Q# wThe 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
