Following a lengthy debate on Monday, Calgary city council voted unanimously in favour to freeze property taxes in 2017, answering a call to help residents struggling with making ends meet in the economic downturn.
Council says that because there is no tax increase next year, the city will be dipping into the Fiscal Stability Reserve to cover more than $20M.
That money will cover the actual tax increase, set at 1.5 percent.
"I'm very happy that it was unanimous. This is good for the citizens. We need it right now. It's a huge difference and people need to realize that," said Ward 1 councillor Ward Sutherland.
Council also passed a freeze on user fees and transit fares in the same debate.
Last week, a motion by Sutherland prompted administrators to take a close look at the possibility of a zero tax increase for 2017.
In the report submitted on Monday morning, staff warned against the move, but was overruled by councillors.
There will be service cuts due to the cost savings found by councillors, but they haven’t been determined yet.
Mayor Nenshi says that the cuts are nothing to be concerned about and could only mean that some fields are mowed less often and bus service will be slower in some areas.
He doesn’t expect there to be any layoffs.
As for 2018, administrators warn there will be increased pressure because of the rebate.
Nonetheless, Nenshi says he is pretty confident they can find savings to keep the 2018 hike down too.
"We also understand that people are in a tough place right now," sad the mayor. "We're in a very good place - we're finding efficiencies, so it was time to let Calgarians in a little bit more on those savings."
