Council will be discussing next year’s tax increase during meetings on Monday and will consider a motion to freeze the rate as it is.
Last week, a number of city councillors introduced a motion to freeze the rate of property taxes next year, claiming that it would help lessen the blow from the economic downturn.
However, a recent administrator’s report says the zero tax increase is not a great idea and suggests a 2.2 percent hike is more palatable.
Monday’s meeting will likely see some councillors attempt to push that down a bit further, possibly to 1.5 percent.
During preliminary discussions last week, councillors say there are a lot of cost savings available to reduce the amount of the tax increase.
The city could also dip into the ‘rainy day’ fund to keep service levels at their current capacity.
But city staff, along with Mayor Nenshi, says that a lower tax increase will only lead to a bigger jump the following year.
