With gas prices in Vancouver flirting with $1.50 a litre, much of the attention has been on the 2.4 cent a litre provincial carbon tax that kicks in tomorrow. However, provincial tax cuts also coming into effect tomorrow mean your pay cheque should be bigger as well.
Victoria has promised the carbon tax will be 'revenue neutral' because it will be offset by cuts to provincial income and business taxes. Provincial income taxes drop 2% effective tomorrow, but because the cut is applied to your income for the entire year, the reduction you'll see on your pay slip will be 4%.
The BC government is playing games with us, but then that's nothing new. I have to fill up my gas tank on the way home tonight and I can only imagine how long the lineup is going to be. The Carbon Tax kicks in at midnight tonight. The above is a quote from our local news website. Oh yes, and I did receive my $100 cheque (dubbed the Climate Change Rebate Cheque) from our beloved government that is urging us to use it for things like eco friendly light bulbs, put towards the purchase of a bike or something that's "green". I wonder how many people actually used it for that purpose? Mine was put towards bills. They giveth, and they taketh away twofold.