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Sensing a possible move to stymie his tax promise, Mayor Jim Watson is battling councillors who want even more money from property owners in 2018.
Watson traded jabs with councillors on social media before delivering his annual economic outlook speech to a business crowd at the Shaw Centre.
On Twitter, he zeroed in on Kitchissippi Coun. Jeff Leiper.
After his speech, Watson noted that Leiper, who suggests adding another 0.5 per cent to the 2018 tax increase, ran for council on the idea of keeping tax hikes to around inflation.
“I think it’s important for people to live up to their campaign commitments and also live within our means,” Watson said in the Shaw Centre.
“The notion that one member of council wants to raise the property tax rate by 0.5 per cent for all of their priorities, well then, why don’t you do it with 24 members of council and each one probably has a series of different priorities? It just doesn’t make any sense.”
But Leiper believes there’s one issue that galvanizes councillors: road maintenance. It’s been a recurring theme during the current budget cycle.
“That seems to be the issue on which everybody can agree … we have to address the state of our assets,” Leiper said.
Leiper has acknowledged that his election campaign material in 2014 talked about tax increases at or near the rate of inflation, but he argues that household inflation measured by the consumer price index (CPI) is vastly different from the cost increases faced by municipalities for things like labour and construction material.
“It would be irresponsible to try to cap the city’s spending to a rate of inflation that’s the same as a household buying toilet paper,” Leiper said.
(Council stopped using a specific municipal price index about 10 years ago after the auditor general spotted errors in the calculations).
Watson said the city needs to have the same approach to budgeting as the average homeowner.
“I’m out at a lot of different events, and the overwhelming response I get from the average citizen who doesn’t come to city hall, who doesn’t have a vested interest in a particular organization, (is) hold the line on taxes. That is a very clear message and I got a very strong mandate by the people in the last election to live up to that commitment.”
Leiper doesn’t believe council voted on a two per cent tax “cap,” as suggested by the mayor. Council can ultimately decide what the tax increase should be each year, the councillor said.
“Situations and priorities change,” Leiper said. “(Watson) is seeking to portray some councillors and their campaign discussions as hard-and-fast commitments to a number, and I think the thinking residents of Ottawa will see through that.”
On the flip side, if CPI is used as a measuring stick for tax increases, an argument could be made that landowners are being overtaxed.
The most recently reported 12-month CPI increase in Ontario was 1.3 per cent for October. For the City of Ottawa, the increase was 1.2 per cent.
Yet, the city wants two per cent more from landowners.
Watson believes it’s a fair increase.
“I made a commitment in the election to keep it to two per cent and I’m not going to go back on my word.”
jwilling@postmedia.com
twitter.com/JonathanWilling
查看原文...
Watson traded jabs with councillors on social media before delivering his annual economic outlook speech to a business crowd at the Shaw Centre.
On Twitter, he zeroed in on Kitchissippi Coun. Jeff Leiper.
After his speech, Watson noted that Leiper, who suggests adding another 0.5 per cent to the 2018 tax increase, ran for council on the idea of keeping tax hikes to around inflation.
“I think it’s important for people to live up to their campaign commitments and also live within our means,” Watson said in the Shaw Centre.
“The notion that one member of council wants to raise the property tax rate by 0.5 per cent for all of their priorities, well then, why don’t you do it with 24 members of council and each one probably has a series of different priorities? It just doesn’t make any sense.”
But Leiper believes there’s one issue that galvanizes councillors: road maintenance. It’s been a recurring theme during the current budget cycle.
“That seems to be the issue on which everybody can agree … we have to address the state of our assets,” Leiper said.
Leiper has acknowledged that his election campaign material in 2014 talked about tax increases at or near the rate of inflation, but he argues that household inflation measured by the consumer price index (CPI) is vastly different from the cost increases faced by municipalities for things like labour and construction material.
“It would be irresponsible to try to cap the city’s spending to a rate of inflation that’s the same as a household buying toilet paper,” Leiper said.
(Council stopped using a specific municipal price index about 10 years ago after the auditor general spotted errors in the calculations).
Watson said the city needs to have the same approach to budgeting as the average homeowner.
“I’m out at a lot of different events, and the overwhelming response I get from the average citizen who doesn’t come to city hall, who doesn’t have a vested interest in a particular organization, (is) hold the line on taxes. That is a very clear message and I got a very strong mandate by the people in the last election to live up to that commitment.”
Leiper doesn’t believe council voted on a two per cent tax “cap,” as suggested by the mayor. Council can ultimately decide what the tax increase should be each year, the councillor said.
“Situations and priorities change,” Leiper said. “(Watson) is seeking to portray some councillors and their campaign discussions as hard-and-fast commitments to a number, and I think the thinking residents of Ottawa will see through that.”
On the flip side, if CPI is used as a measuring stick for tax increases, an argument could be made that landowners are being overtaxed.
The most recently reported 12-month CPI increase in Ontario was 1.3 per cent for October. For the City of Ottawa, the increase was 1.2 per cent.
Yet, the city wants two per cent more from landowners.
Watson believes it’s a fair increase.
“I made a commitment in the election to keep it to two per cent and I’m not going to go back on my word.”
jwilling@postmedia.com
twitter.com/JonathanWilling
查看原文...
