Toronto taxpayers were jolted into 2024 with news city politicians are scheming to push through the largest property tax hike in Toronto history. 

Mayor Olivia Chow’s budget chief, Councillor Shelley Carroll, told Torontonians she will push for a 10.5 per cent increase in property taxes in 2024.

Carroll went to great pains to convince taxpayers that a massive property tax hike is necessary.

“We have reached the point where if we’re having to solve our own problems, it means a substantial increase,” Carroll said. “We’re now being honest about what it takes to get the city you want.”

According to Carroll, for Toronto to close its budget gap and deliver the kind of city Torontonians want, a property tax hike of at least $443 million is unavoidable.

Carroll also warned that her proposed property tax increase would rise to 16.5 per cent, or $696 million, if the federal government doesn’t deliver on council’s request for $250 million to help pay for the cost of housing refugees. 

But here’s the truth: what Carroll is saying is hogwash.

Carroll’s budget increases city spending by a jaw-dropping $884 million.

If Toronto were to scale back the size of Carroll’s spending increase, council could deliver a property tax freeze for struggling taxpayers and wouldn’t have to go cap-in-hand to the feds asking for another cash infusion.

Plus, there would still be room to increase spending by about $200 million over 2023 levels.

The reality is that council has the resources it needs to fix the city’s budget woes and stop a property tax hike. Politicians simply need to have the guts to say no to reckless new spending.

How would Carroll’s present plan impact the average homeowner?

The average home in the city of Toronto is currently worth just under $1.1 million. If council were to endorse Carroll’s 16.5 per cent property tax increase (if the feds don’t deliver on extra cash), the typical homeowner will be looking at a $1,192 tax hike. Even if the feds do come through, Carroll’s plan pummels the average homeowner with a $758 tax hike.

Taxpayers are going through tough times. More than 400,000 Ontarians are currently working multiple jobs just to make ends meet. Fifty per cent of Canadians say they are $200 away from not being able to pay their bills. And the typical annual food bill for a Canadian family is set to rise by $700 this year.

Carroll’s answer to all of this is to propose a tax increase that is greater than any tax hike in decades. In fact, this tax hike proposal is unprecedented.

The good news for taxpayers is these numbers aren’t final. Chow plans to engage in public consultations and then present a budget of her own Feb. 1.

That gives Toronto taxpayers a three-week opportunity to convince Chow to abandon Carroll’s reckless plan.

Carroll crafted her budget proposal with guidance from Chow. Carroll repeatedly said she took inspiration from Chow’s 2023 mayoral election platform. Make no mistake: Carroll’s numbers are Chow’s numbers.

But when Chow was asked if she was prepared to commit to Carroll’s sky-high tax hikes, she deflected and refused to give a substantive answer. She simply kept repeating that she wanted to hear from Toronto taxpayers.

Toronto taxpayers need to seize on Chow’s refusal to completely commit to Carroll’s plans.

It’s time for Toronto taxpayers to give Chow what she’s asked for: every Torontonian opposed to a colossal property tax increase should attend one of the mayor’s town halls or send her office an email.

Toronto taxpayers cannot afford a double-digit property tax hike. Now is the time for taxpayers to make their priorities crystal clear to Chow and her allies on council.