Edmonton City Council sets property tax to 6.9%

Edmonton City Council approved an increase in property tax to 6.9 per cent in a Fall Budget Adjustment vote Thursday.

The approved tax hike puts the rate above the previously promised figure of 6.4 per cent during the budget debates.

In a press release after the vote, Edmonton Mayor Andrew Knack said, “While an increase of 6.9 percent to property taxes is higher than I would’ve liked, the budget adjustments made were based on choosing to position ourselves on a stronger path forward.”

Earlier, Councillor Aaron Paquette’s proposal to raise the tax levy to nearly 10 per cent was voted down. He had suggested that the revenue would have allowed to fill up the rainy-day fund to and not take on more debt.

“Just rip off the band-aid and pay for it now. And, the rationale is because if we keep it going over multiple years to pay for — there is an indisputable fact that Edmontonians pay more,” Paquette had argued.

In addition to the property tax changes, councillors also approved $11 million for tourism attraction under Explore Edmonton.

Knack had defended the funding as an investment for the city. “Every dollar we put into Explore Edmonton is seeing a substantial return of about a 29-dollar return,” he said.

Traffic safety enforcement also got funding following what is shaping up to be Edmonton’s deadliest year on record.  The budget adjustment will provide $5.8 million in ongoing funding for more peace officers.

Also on the traffic safety front Sipiwiyiniwak Councillor Thu Parmar scored her first victory on the council with a $9.3 million in one-time funding approval for Whitemud drive upgrades at Enoch Cree nation.

 “I think what’s different from this intersection versus others is that we came with a funding partner, so the city is on the hook for a third. The Government of Alberta is giving another third and Enoch Cree Nation is also giving a third. So, this is really a testament to how we want to work moving forward,” Parmar said.

In another press release after the vote, the City Council said, the vote will not impact services like animal care and control, spring street sweeping, Dedicated Accessible Transit Service (DATS) and over 200 construction projects.

Thursday’s budget adjustment would be the final update to the 2023–2026 four-year budget cycle before the City prepares the next cycle’s budget in 2026, the press release from the mayor’s office said.