Alberta fuel tax hike coming same day as carbon tax hike
LETHBRIDGE, AB: The Canadian Taxpayers Federation is urging the Alberta government to scrap its fuel tax hike planned for April 1.
“The Trudeau government is already slapping us with a carbon tax hike and the last thing Albertans need is to be punched by their own provincial government,” said Kris Sims, CTF Alberta Director. “You can’t tear a strip off the prime minister for jacking up his carbon tax and turn around and hike your own fuel tax by even more on the same day, what gives?”
Right now, the provincial fuel tax costs nine cents per litre.
The Alberta government quietly noted in its 2024-25 budget that it’s planning on hiking the provincial fuel tax back up to 13 cents per litre of gasoline and diesel starting April 1.
In the same budget document, the Alberta government reported that fully suspending the fuel tax saved Alberta taxpayers about $1 billion per year.
The CTF questions the need to reinstate the fuel tax since the province reports: “fuel tax revenue is not dedicated to funding construction and maintenance of provincial roads.”
At full cost, the provincial fuel tax adds on about $10 per fill up for a minivan, about $15 for a pickup truck and about $130 extra for a big rig truck using diesel.
The federal carbon tax is also set to jump up at the end of the month.
At $80 per tonne, the carbon tax will cost 17 cents per litre of gasoline, 21 cents per litre of diesel and 15 cents per cubic metre of natural gas.
The Parliamentary Budget Officer calculates the average Alberta family will be out more than $900 this year due to the carbon tax, even with rebates factored in.
“Albertans are counting on their provincial government to shield them against Trudeau’s carbon tax and instead they are getting a provincial tax hike at the pumps, too,” said Sims. “It’s a mystery why the NDP government in Manitoba has suspended its provincial fuel tax, saving drivers 14 cents per litre, but Albertans are seeing their fuel taxes going back up.”
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