In May, Calgary city council directed staff to report back on potential service cuts and risks if the city reduces the 2017 property tax rate to between zero and 3.2 per cent. Here is what staff are recommending, in a report set to go before council Monday.
A zero per cent property tax increase is not being advised. “The risks associated with rate increases below 1.5 per cent increase materially and, for this reason, administration advises against using them,” the report reads.
An option to reduce the tax rate to 1.5 per cent, through a combination of service reductions and corporate sources, will be discussed in camera on Monday. “Broadly speaking, risks and service impacts increase as the tax rate is further reduced,” the report cautions.
Staff have also outlined a 2.2 per cent property tax increase option that would be achieved through service reductions and corporate savings — a route that staff say is associated with “some level of risk and moderate service impacts.”
A strategy outlined by council in May would reduce the property tax rate to 3.2 per cent through budget efficiencies and use of the city’s budget savings account. “These reductions assume some risk, however, the risks are deemed to be relatively low and can be achieved with no service impacts,” the report indicates.
