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Mayor warns of 'scary' tax hike
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/ Z; |" S7 @; h( S: H* ZThink 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. 3 O4 S, c7 Z8 n9 k
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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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2 i: s- M2 r) }3 X"Looking at this we're talking an 8-10% tax increase," Mandel said in council chambers.
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0 P" N' @8 R+ j7 V% K; z) }City manager Al Maurer confirmed that Mandel's prediction was on the money, based on initial cost estimates
2 R( {& J% i# Z5 C1 O6 g"Given the amount of it, it's going to be scary," the mayor said. 5 w) Q7 r0 h. r
' U3 o* J4 ?/ y1 n" k1 gA hike in that range could cost the average homeowner up to $200 a year. J! O% @" {2 }8 ~( }
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"There's no question costs are going up," said Coun. Michael Phair, who conceded the tax hike "may very well" be in the range predicted by Mandel.
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1 L6 U! b7 j/ H/ H4 Y' c8 T9 w/ S) WCoun. Ron Hayter said it's still very early in the process, and he cautioned against getting overly anxious at this point. 5 X* G s, Z$ p
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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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! X- t; x$ D- A% Y: l/ A1 \Maurer said income from investments and various financial strategies could offset a large hike. + i8 s3 `' B( P% D+ s1 ]# H* y
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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.
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8 C `: `# m( m ?! t4 s% L+ g"We've certainly got more demands," Maurer said, noting council still has to find money to fund an improved snow-clearing program. % H) y3 j1 O" m# p
/ J! ^! T, H7 L( s0 K- tScott Hennig, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said there's no excuse for a double-digit tax increase.
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# r7 k* O8 P7 D jHe 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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* m6 q& f+ |; r1 ^, {, C"They're going to hear from a lot of angry taxpayers if they're looking at 10%," Hennig said.
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1 K* d) i2 G3 {& I ]2 w7 R"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." 2 E3 x8 J$ i! z& c: U9 r. j) O5 U
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The average property tax bill in Edmonton will go up 4.95% this year, the city has said. 5 G; @" J1 t; X/ j t
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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
