-- CTF Offers Instant E-mail Service For Tax Raged Canadians --

OTTAWA: The Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) today posted a "form" tax rage letter on its Internet site that can be immediately forwarded to Paul Martin and five of his colleagues as a means for Canadians to quickly express their outrage at Canada's high taxes.

"With three days to go before this year's tax deadline, our phones are ringing off the hook, and each call is the same as the previous one. People are mad and disgusted that they continue to pay more taxes but receive less in services," stated CTF federal director Walter Robinson. "In response, we are using technology to allow Canadians to convey this anger directly to the Finance Minister and five of his backbench colleagues.

"Taxpayers simply have to visit our site and point and click to immediately express their anger to Finance Minster Paul Martin," added Robison.

In addition, this message will be sent to five backbench Liberal MPs representing all regions of the country. They are as follows:

• Atlantic Region Wayne Easter, MP for Malpeque (PEI)
  
  
• Quebec Region Nick Descepola, MP for Vaudreuil-Soulanges (Ouebec)
  
  
• Ontario Region Paul Szabo, MP for Mississauga South (Ontario)'
  
  
• Western Region Reg Alcock, MP for Winnipeg South (Manitoba)
  
  
• Pacific Region Sophia Leung, MP for Vancouver Kingsway (British Columbia)

"We hope that hundreds, if not thousands of Canadian taxpayers, take a few minutes to channel their tax rage into this constructive pursuit to let the Finance Minister, and the government's whipped backbenchers, know how they feel about Canada's excessively high and oppressive taxation," concluded Robinson. "Simply filing their tax returns and grumbling is not enough. Canadians must rise up and begin to reclaim ownership of public policy."



Tax Rage Letter

Dear Minister Martin

Taxes in this country are too high and still climbing! They are killing jobs, eroding family incomes and making saving for the future impossible. They are stripping the poorest Canadians of opportunity and sending our best and brightest to live and work outside the country.

Consider the following facts:

Fact: A recent poll done by Compas for the National Post revealed that 85% of Canadians are upset by the amount of taxes they pay given the value, or lack of value, that they receive in the services that their taxes are supposed to pay for. This is consistent with the 82% of Canadians that think taxes are too high as reported ina Southam/Angus Reid poll in December 1997.

Fact: Statistics Canada reports (February 1999) that personal income taxes account for 21 cents of every family dollar spent. This is more than the average family spends on food, transportation or shelter.

Fact: In 1993/1994, federal personal income taxes (PIT) accounted for 44.3% of all federal government revenues. Today, PIT accounts for 47.0% of all federal government revenues. And in 1993/1994, PIT were measured as 7.1% of GDP. Today they account for 8.3% of GDP. That's a 17% increase over 5 years. And the rise in the tax burden has outstripped inflation by a ratio of over 2 to 1during the past 7 years.

Fact: in spite of the token, shell-game tax relief provided in the last federal budget, bracket creep (the non-indexation of tax brackets) is still with us. And the federal goverrnment will rake in at least $10.1 billion in tax revenues this year it would not otherwise have if tax brackets had been indexed to inflation since 1986. Moreover, according to a December 1997 report from the House of Commons Finance Committee, this policy has ensured that 840,000 low-income Canadian families have been pushed onto the tax rolls.

Fact: The federal tax paid by one-earner families of four earning $60,000 pre-budget 1998 was $10,319. Post-budget 1999 this figure drops to $9,589. The federal tax paid by dual-earner families of four earning $60,000 pre-budget 1998 was $6,410. Post-budget 1999 this figure drops to $5,790. Therefore, the one-earner family paid almost 61% more pre-budget 1998, but now pays 65.6% more in taxes after the 1999 budget.

It is time to chart a new course.

I urge you to cut income tax by 10 percent, re-index the income tax system to inflation and eliminate the all remaining surtaxes. Lower taxes will stimulate growth, unearth the underground economy, create more jobs and ultimately generate more revenue for your government to dedicate to debt reduction and program priorities.