City of Calgary seeks input about proposed tax increases

CALGARY- Only a small number of Calgarians have chimed in about the city’s next four year budget.

Earlier this year, the city rolled out a bus, website and series of events aimed at getting input about what services taxpayers want, as well as their thoughts on tax rates.

A preliminary report presented on Monday showed that while over 21-thousand people visited the city’s website, only 3,500 people filled out the form. An additional 3,400 people visited the bus or attended a community event.

However, the mayor says he’s not concerned about the poor showing.

“It’s a big number,” said Mayor Naheed Nenshi. “You’d be hard pressed to find other governments with bigger populations with numbers that big, really taking the time.”

The recommendation among those surveyed in terms of a proposed tax increase was 5.22 per cent to maintain services.

A full report is due April 28, and a final decision on the next four year budget will come out on May 5.