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431-00059 (Taxation)

Paper petition

Original language of petition: English

Petition to the House of Commons in Parliament Assembled

We, the undersigned, citizens and residents of Canada, draw the attention of the House to the following:

THAT,

  • On May 30, 2019, Alberta Premier Jason Kenney kept his campaign promise and gave Albertans the largest tax break in Alberta history by repealing the punishing NDP carbon tax.
  • Once Alberta repealed the provincial carbon tax, the Ottawa Liberals imposed their own federal carbon tax on hard working Albertan families while giving the largest polluters a free pass.

  • The carbon tax is not an environmental plan, it's a tax plan that will raise the cost of everything from gasoline to groceries.
  • Just like the destructive Alberta carbon tax, the federal carbon tax will: fail to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, make life more expensive for Albertans, and delete jobs from Alberta's economy.

THEREFORE, we the undersigned, citizens and residents of Canada, call upon the Government of Canada to scrap their punishing federal carbon tax.

Response by the Minister of Finance

Signed by (Minister or Parliamentary Secretary): Mr. Sean Fraser

Canadians, including Albertans, see the costs of a changing climate all around them. Climate change is driving stronger storms, wildfires, and record-breaking heatwaves. Canadians also know that taking climate action is an enormous opportunity to create jobs and advance economic growth. A price on pollution is one of the best tools to fight climate change while keeping life affordable for Canadian families.

The Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act (GGPPA), which received royal assent on June 21, 2018 as part of the Budget Implementation Act, 2018, No. 1, establishes the framework to implement the federal carbon pollution pricing system in provinces and territories that request it and in provinces and territories that do not have a system that meets the federal stringency requirements. The federal system has two components: a regulatory charge on fossil fuels (the “fuel charge”) and a trading system for large industry (the “output-based pricing system” or OBPS).

The federal fuel charge applies, as of January 1, 2020, in Alberta, as a result of the province's May 30, 2019 repeal of its carbon levy.

Alberta’s Technology Innovation and Emissions Reduction Regulation meets the federal government’s stringency benchmark criteria for carbon-pollution pricing systems, for 2020, for the emission sources they cover. The Regulation went into effect on January 1, 2020, replacing Alberta’s previous approach to pricing pollution from industry. As a result, the OBPS—the large industry portion of the federal system—does not apply in Alberta.

The Government of Canada does not keep any direct proceeds from carbon pollution pricing. Instead, in Alberta, the bulk of the direct fuel charge proceeds is returned to residents of Alberta through Climate Action Incentive payments. The remainder of the direct fuel charge proceeds in Alberta is used to help certain sectors in the province.

In December 2019, the Minister of Finance specified the Climate Action Incentive payment amounts for 2020. Individuals will be able to claim these payments through their 2019 personal income tax returns. In Alberta, the Climate Action Incentive payment baseline amounts are $444 for a single adult (or first adult in a couple), $222 for a second adult in a couple (or first child of a single parent), and $111 for each child under 18 (starting with the second child for single parents). A family of four in Alberta would receive a baseline amount of $888.

  • Exceptionally, the 2020 Climate Action Incentive payment claimed by eligible Albertans reflects fuel charge proceeds generated over a 15-month period. This consists of three months (January–March 2020) with a carbon price of $20, plus 12 months (April 2020–March 2021) with a carbon price of $30.

In recognition of the fact that people who live in small and rural communities have reduced access to cleaner transportation options, a supplementary amount in addition to these baseline Climate Action Incentive payments is provided for eligible individuals and families who live outside a census metropolitan area, as defined by Statistics Canada. This supplement increases the baseline amount by 10 per cent.

In Alberta, most households will receive more in Climate Action Incentive payments than they pay as a result of the federal carbon pollution pricing system. For 2020, the average cost impact of the federal system per household in Alberta is estimated to be $534, compared to the average Climate Action Incentive payment per household of $880.

The average 2020 Climate Action Incentive payment of $880 per household in Alberta consists of $126 for the first three months of the fuel charge (January–March 2020) and $754 for the next 12 months (April 2020–March 2021). These amounts are greater than the estimated average cost impacts per household (which are $76 for the first three-month period and $458 for the following 12-month period).

Presented to the House of Commons
Tom Kmiec (Calgary Shepard)
February 3, 2020 (Petition No. 431-00059)
Government response tabled
April 11, 2020
Photo - Tom Kmiec
Calgary Shepard
Conservative Caucus
Alberta

Only validated signatures are counted towards the total number of signatures.