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  • Taxpayers Federation repeats call for lower and dedicated gas taxes - eliminate the "deficit elimination" tax and stop taxing the tax.
  • Motorists beware - B.C. pump prices will increase by 2.41¢ on July 1 and 7.23¢ in 2012 as a result of province's new carbon tax.
  • Gas prices will rise nationally if Canada adopts carbon tax.
  
  2008 Gas Tax Report
  

HALIFAX / FREDERICTON: The Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) today launched its 10th annual Gas Tax Honesty Campaign, marking Gas Tax Honesty Day. The yearly campaign kicks off the summer travel season for Canadian motorists. It is also the day of the year that taxpaying motorists are reminded of the high tax component hidden in the price of gasoline - a tax burden that will only increase if the federal government and provinces adopt a carbon tax on fossil fuels.

Over the past 12 months - the period of May 2007 to April 2008 - the average national price of a litre of gasoline paid by Canadian motorists was approximately $1.16. This represents a 17-cent increase over last year's average price. Today, gasoline taxes account for an average 28% of the pump price.

CTF directors held press conferences at nine gas stations across the country to talk about government tax gouging. Afterwards, a handful of customers were refunded the tax component of their pump purchase to highlight the heavy tax load on gasoline. If proponents of a carbon tax are successful Canadians will pay more for gas and diesel (as well as natural gas, propane and home heating fuel).

"Ottawa will collect approximately $5-billion in direct gasoline and diesel taxes this year. Another $1-billion will come from the GST," said federal director John Williamson. "The good news is Ottawa will spend $1.95-billion or 37% of its gas and diesel tax revenue on roads and highway infrastructure this year. The amount will increase to 52% next year when roadway spending is scheduled to hit $2.7-billion. This level of spending exceeds the 50% target first advocated by the CTF in 2002. Four years ago the federal government spent only 7% of gas tax revenues on roads making this an impressive turnabout. This is a partial victory for motorists. To complete it, gas taxes need to be lower."

Williamson continued, "The bad news is some are calling for new taxes on most sources of energy, including gasoline. Consumers should be under no illusion, enacting a carbon tax will mean higher energy prices and a tax increase on the middle class. As a result of B.C.'s carbon tax, gas prices in the province will increase by 2.41¢ on Canada Day and by 7.23¢ in 2012. It will impact family budgets."

The CTF is calling on Ottawa to cut, rather than raise gas taxes by eliminating the 1.5 cent/litre "deficit elimination tax" as a first step (see details, next page); stop taxing taxes by removing the GST (and HST where applicable) charged on federal and provincial gas levies; and reducing the federal levy an additional 2.5 cents. These three measures would reduce the gas tax bite by 5 cents a litre and are, in part, consistent with what Stephen Harper promised in Opposition.

To date, the CTF has delivered more than 150,000 petitions to Parliament Hill demanding lower and dedicated gas taxes. The CTF began its Gas Tax Honesty Campaign in 1999 to inform Canadians of the gasoline taxes they pay at the pumps, to ensure gasoline taxes are dedicated toward roads, and to pressure Ottawa to cut gasoline taxes not spent on road construction. The 2008 report is available by clicking here.

Additional Canadian Gas Tax Facts:

• The federal government collects billions of dollars each year from gas and diesel excise taxes. In the 2007-08 fiscal year, Ottawa collected $5-billion in gasoline and diesel taxes (not counting GST revenues). In fiscal 2004, Ottawa reinvested only 7 per cent of its gas tax revenues in roads and highway development. In 2007-08, the federal government dedicated $1.8-billion to roads and highways. This represents 36 per cent of annual gas tax revenues. The same amount - 37 per cent - will be spent this year. By 2009-10, over $2.6-billion is scheduled to be spent on road infrastructure, which exceeds the 50 per cent of gas tax revenue target first advocated by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation in 2002. This turnabout is a partial victory for taxpaying motorists. To complete it, gas taxes need to be lower.
  
  
• GST is charged on the full pump price, gasoline taxes included. It is a tax-on-tax. In 2008-09, the federal government will collect $1.1-billion in gasoline GST revenues. Last year, Ottawa collected $1.25-billion from GST on gasoline. (The tax bite was eased to some extent as a result of the second point GST reduction.)
  
  
• The federal government benefits from higher gas prices. As the pump price increases so too does the GST. For every 10 cent increase in the price of gasoline, Ottawa's GST revenues rise by $100-million.
  
  
• As a deficit reduction measure in 1995, Ottawa increased the federal gasoline tax from 8.5 to 10 cents per litre. The deficit was vanquished a decade ago, but the tax remains and the federal government's gouging at the pumps continues even with multi-year, multi-billion dollar federal surpluses. Since the budget was balanced in fiscal 1997-98, Ottawa has collected $6-billion from its so-called "deficit elimination tax." All said, the federal gasoline tax increased by 567 per cent between 1985 and 1995 - rising from 1.5 to 10 cents per litre.
  
  
• In opposition, the Conservatives made repeated promises to remove the GST tax-on-tax bite and pledged to remove the GST completely when gasoline prices exceeded 85 cents per litre. In the summer of 2005, Mr. Harper was quoted saying that gas taxes could be reduced by as much as 5 cents a litre.
  
  
• Three Conservative budgets have failed to lower gas taxes although roadway spending is substantially increased.