1/Buckle up, kids. This is gonna take some words.

“And nothing focuses the mind like a hanging.”

WTF is that supposed to mean, you lunatics @SaveCalgary? Are you seriously that into gaslighting?

I took a screen shot in case this tweet magically gets deleted for its idiocy. https://twitter.com/savecalgary/status/1286779931968434176

2/I’ll start with some facts, then get to opinion. Fact: the supposed “tax freeze” and even the proposal to cut taxes 7.5% are not actually freezes or cuts. Why? Because the system is set up to start with an operating budget, which then guides distribution of taxes.

3/To clarify, it means that Council is not advised of the actual revenue we stand to make off property taxes if you calculate mill rate multiplied by assessed values. Instead, we use the term “revenue neutral” to say we will collect only enough tax to cover operating budget.

4/The process is to take the operating budget as set & distribute it between tax classes. So if a class comes in with a lower assessed value than previous years, another class gets the burden shoved over to them. That’s why there’s no certainty & “freeze” does not apply.

5/The 0% indicative rate is in fact a 0% increase to the operating budget, not necessarily your property taxes. Your taxes may go up if you are the lucky recipient of the “distribution” that corrects for shortfalls. With me so far?

6/This means that the root problem is an inability for council to set a budget with a true picture of estimated property tax revenue. So the solution is to bring a change to the process, where we receive the estimated revenue to be collected before we set an operating budget.

7/That’s why I voted against the indicative rate of 0%, as well as the proposal to cut 7.5%. Ultimately, taxpayers do not get a pure cut across the board. We need to see the revenue projections, then set an operating budget that fits those projections.

8/Without that process change to see absolute values for property tax revenue, everything we do is a guess. I will be bringing a motion to council to change the process & I hope colleagues will get behind it. It is the only way to set a budget with transparency & certainty.

9/When people try to stir up shit by saying a reckoning is coming, make sure you know what you’re actually talking about. Maybe pay attention to the facts & really boring stuff like process change that can actually address the issue. It’s not as sexy as screaming CUTS, I guess.

10/Also, maybe stop being sheep that can only get behind the labels that narrow thinkers have applied to members of council. Maybe spend ten minutes of your life actually reading an explanation or thinking for yourself. Get to know the issue & make an informed decision.

11/Finally, if you’re really just so busy or tired that you get all your news from Twitter, please feel free to parade your homemade signs with spelling mistakes on the steps of city hall. Feel free to vote us out. But don’t use bullshit words like “hanging” to send your message.

12/That’s about it, I suppose. Looking forward to the resulting vitriol.

Calgary - we can be better than this. Please pay some attention to local affairs & educate yourselves. I know we have masses of smart people out there. Weigh in. Show yourselves.