A family of four in Red Deer will see a $2,612 increase in property taxes over the six-year transition to a provincial police force, says the Alberta NDP.
Based on the NDP’s analysis of the UCP’s cost estimates, the provincially assessed value of communities served by the RCMP and population data, families will have to pay hundreds of dollars, and in some cases thousands of dollars, in new property taxes to pay for the UCP police force.
“These are punishing costs for Albertans who are trying to survive the worst cost-of-living crisis in 40 years,” said Irfan Sabir, NDP justice critic, in a statement.
“The UCP has already raised everyone’s income taxes, property taxes, school fees, tuition, interest on student loans, utilities and car insurance. Now they want Albertans to pay even more for a UCP police force they don’t want.”
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A PricewaterhouseCoopers report into an Alberta Provincial Police estimates transition costs over six years will include $241 million in operating costs and $125 million in capital costs. The province will also lose $1.02 billion in federal funding over those six years.
For a family of four in Rocky Mountain House, a provincial police force adds $2,248 to their property taxes over the six-year transition. In Camrose taxes rise by $2,576. In Cochrane and in Chestermere, it’s almost $4,000 more. In Canmore, a family of four pays $10,400 in new taxes.
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Sabir said this foolishness isn’t going to end on Oct. 6 when the UCP choose a new leader because every candidate has promised to move forward with the UCP police.
“That means whoever becomes premier in October, they will force hundreds of millions of dollars of new property taxes onto Alberta families and they will continue to ignore the rising problem of gun violence in our communities.”
He said an NDP government will drop this “expensive and stupid idea.”
szielinski@reddeeradvocate.com
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