Vernon’s mayor denies taxes are out of control. Wayne Lippert says he is frustrated with a report from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business that claims the city is eighth worst in B.C. for spending surpassing population growth. “They are no different than other organizations. They don’t understand structures nor have they researched what has changed,” he said. As an example, Lippert says the entire tax bill does not funnel back into city coffers. “They just look at the tax line and not what is requisitioned by other jurisdictions such as regional district, schools and library board,” he said. “I’m disappointed because we’ve explained this to them and they haven’t investigated it.” The report claims spending at city hall was 2.21 times higher than inflation and growth in 2007. It was 2.09 in 2006.
According to the federation, Vernon had excess spending of $7.1 million in 2007, with operating spending climbing 60.2 per cent between 2000 and 2007 and population/inflation growth of only 27.2 per cent. “This kind of spending is disrespectful to taxpayers and harmful to communities,” said Laura Jones, CFIB’s vice-president for Western Canada, in a release. “It means property taxes and other municipal fees increase faster than the ability of residents and business owners to pay.”
Coun. Bob Spiers has not reviewed the report yet and isn’t sure if the concerns are valid. However, he says there is always room for improvement. “I’ve always believed our taxes are too high and we need to find other revenue sources for the things we need,” he said. “But we’re paying for so many other things that have been downloaded on to us by the province.”
Budget discussions for 2010 are underway and Lippert insists city hall is mindful of the tax burden facing residents. “We look at the budget more and more every year and we give opportunities for input to the public,” he said.
-------------
Click HERE to read the full report. 2007 end-date (Vernon and Coldstream In Charts below) Also for comparison is same report from 2006. Click Here.
No comments:
Post a Comment