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| Get Ready for More Taxes in 2010 |
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(Queen's Park Report - January 12, 2010) Christmas is over, the tree has come down, the decorations have been stored and the reality of a New Year and a new decade are upon us. While 2010 shows some glimmer of hope for an economic recovery, there are dark clouds forming in Ontario and it comes in the form of new taxes. This year could be coined “the year of the tax.” That’s because on July 1st Dalton McGuinty will slap an extra 8% tax on a host of nondiscretionary items from hydro and home heating to haircuts and snow removal. The real kicker will be the hike in gas taxes. Take a Ford F-150 as an example. With one fill up a week that’ll amount to about $472 in new sales taxes this year alone just to fuel your truck. Even if you’ve got a more fuel efficient Honda Civic, one fill up a week will cost about $290 more in new gas taxes. Truth is the impact of increased gas taxes alone will cancel out the so-called ‘tax package’ Mr. McGuinty claims will counteract the HST tax increase. As if the HST isn’t demoralizing enough, just think of all of the other taxes Mr. McGuinty has implemented in recent years. Consider the electronics tax. Have you bought a new TV or computer recently? Did you notice the extra $10 or $15 charge slapped on the bill? That was Mr. McGuinty’s doing too. Did you entertain over the holidays? Perhaps you noticed that you can no longer get a beer for a buck anymore. That’s because Mr. McGuinty ordered the minimum price of beer to go up. The list of new taxes goes on and on. So what can we do about all of this? For starters, we can tell Mr. McGuinty that hiking taxes in the grip of recession spells trouble for middle-class families and seniors living on fixed incomes. We can do this through the Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs, an all-party committee that is accepting written submissions from the public on what you think should be in the provincial budget. This is a good opportunity to tell Mr. McGuinty to repeal the HST in the budget or get rid of the electronics tax. Farmers could write in support of point of sale exemptions for farm implements, just to name a few. Constituents wishing to make a submission should address their ideas to the Clerk of the Committee, Mr. William Short, and sent it to him at 111 Wellesley Street West, Queen’s Park, Toronto, Ontario M7A 1A8. This is your chance to make your voice heard. Let’s fight to make sure the future isn’t anymore taxing than it already is. |
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