Chow to trim tax hike to 9.5 per cent in Toronto budget set to be unveiled Thursday
CTV
Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow is set to unveil a budget Thursday that includes a 9.5 per cent tax bump for homeowners.
Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow is set to unveil a budget Thursday that includes a 9.5 per cent tax bump for homeowners.
The staff-proposed budget released on Jan. 10 called for a nine per cent property tax increase, as well as a 1.5 per cent increase to the City Building Fund. That 10.5 per cent bump would have amounted to an increase of about $360 a year for the average Toronto household, Budget Chief Shelley Carroll said at the time.
The mayor’s office confirmed to CTV News Toronto that Chow is proposing lowering the property tax hike to eight per cent. Combined with a pre-approved 1.5 per cent increase to the City Building Fund for transit and housing, that would bring the total 2024 residential increase to 9.5 per cent.
The hike would amount to the largest property tax increase since amalgamation and follow a seven per cent increase put through in former mayor John Tory’s last budget before he stepped down a year ago.
Chow has been gathering feedback from councillors and the public over the past few weeks, and is set to unveil her version of the budget, which will go to city council for debate next week.
The mayor is scheduled to hold a press conference at Scarborough Centre Station at 10:30 a.m. CTV News Toronto will live-stream the announcement.
The mayor said as late as Monday that she was still listening to residents in deciding how high the property tax increase should be.
