Happy New Year, BC taxpayers! Now open your wallets and get ready to give a bunch more of your hard-earned dollars to Ottawa, Victoria, and City Hall.
This will be a difficult year for taxpayers in BC. Let’s break down the costs for an average family:
January 1, 2012
CPP/EI increases 5.35% ($140/year)
Medical Services Premium increases 6% ($84/year)
February 2012
ICBC rates increase 11.2% ($68/year)
March 2012
BC Hydro rates increase 3.9% ($36/year)
April 2012
TransLink gas tax increases 2 cents per litre
GST on gas increases 0.1 cents per litre
July 2012
BC carbon tax increases 1.1 cents per litre of gas
Property taxes expected increase 2-6% (decisions to be made in spring)
There is some hope for 2012 in BC. The provincial government is launching reviews of every Crown Corporation, following the successful BC Hydro review model. That Hydro review highlighted questionable spending decisions and bloated staffing—which we think occurs at several of these Crown Corporations. Hopefully these reviews will result in savings for taxpayers.
Is Canada Off Track?
Canada has problems. You see them at gas station. You see them at the grocery store. You see them on your taxes.
Is anyone listening to you to find out where you think Canada’s off track and what you think we could do to make things better?
You can tell us what you think by filling out the survey