• First full year of Canada Child Benefit means slightly lower income taxes and more cash for most Canadian families
• Most Newfoundlanders face substantial tax hikes while most Quebecers will enjoy substantial tax breaks
• Carbon taxes will hit Albertans and Ontarians beginning January 1st
• Alberta carbon tax will increase cost of gas, heating, groceries, other taxes

OTTAWA, ON: The Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) has released its annual report crunching the numbers on new year’s tax changes for Canadians, and the result will likely mean a tax break for most Canadians in 2017.

The two main federal measures are changes to Employment Insurance (EI) premiums which will result in tax savings of up to $132 for employees and $185 for employers, and the first full year of the means-tested Canada Child Benefit (CCB), which is also tax-free.

“High income earners in most provinces will pay more,” said CTF Federal Director Aaron Wudrick. “But for the majority of Canadians, these two changes will mean more money in their pockets.”

As part of its annual New Year’s Tax Changes report, the CTF has calculated the tax impact for families for 2017 for 44 hypothetical Canadian households. Some highlights include:

• A two-child, single-income family in Ontario earning $60,000 per year will pay $122 less in taxes and receive an additional $1,824 in CCB payments. (not including the Ontario carbon tax)
• A two-child, two-income family in Alberta earning $80,000 per year will pay $153 less in taxes and receive an additional $2,007 in CCB payments (not including the Alberta carbon tax), while the same family in Quebec will pay $233 less in taxes and receive an additional $2,075 in CCB payments.
• A B.C. couple with no kids earning $100,000 will see a small tax cut of $25.
• Quebecers will see some of the biggest income tax cuts, with families earning $250,000 seeing $1,409 in tax cuts, while a Newfoundland family earning the same would see a tax hike of over $3,000.

Wudrick cautioned that while the news was generally positive on EI and child benefits, looming carbon taxes could claw back those gains.

“Alberta and Ontario are beginning their ill-advised experiment with carbon taxes on January 1st, 2017,” said Wudrick. “And if the Trudeau government has their way, other provinces that don’t currently have a carbon tax won’t be far behind.”

The Alberta carbon tax is being introduced at $20 per tonne on January 1st. It will increase the cost of gasoline by 4.49 cents per litre, diesel by 5.35 cents per litre and natural gas by $1.011 per gigajoule. The cost of shipped items will also increase.

Individuals earning under $47,500 in Alberta will receive a maximum of $200 in rebates, couples earning under $95,000 will receive a maximum of $300 and a couple with two children will receive a maximum of $360 to offset some of the costs of the carbon tax. The small business tax in Alberta is being reduced from 3 per cent to 2 per cent.

“Ultimately, every Albertan will pay for the carbon tax,” said CTF Alberta Director Paige MacPherson. “Whether it’s an increase in gas costs for rural residents, an increase in property taxes, increases to groceries and home heating, or a decrease in the availability of jobs. The province is ringing in the new year with a major cash grab.”

CTF calculations for the tax changes that will be occurring on January 1st for 44 different income and family scenarios can be found here: http://www.taxpayer.com/media/2017-NYTC.pdf

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For more information, please contact:

CTF Federal Director Aaron Wudrick cell: 613-295-8409, office: 613-234-6554, email: [email protected]

CTF Alberta Director Paige MacPherson cell: 403-478-7184, email: [email protected]