Saskatchewan won’t charge PST on top of new carbon tax on power bills

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This article was published 01/04/2019 (2769 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

REGINA – Saskatchewan says it will not apply the provincial sales tax on top of the federal government’s carbon tax on power bills.

The federal tax began Monday in Saskatchewan and other provinces that had refused to impose their own emissions pricing.

The province is challenging the carbon tax in court, arguing Ottawa’s plan in unconstitutional because it does not respect provincial sovereignty.

Ottawa says it can impose the tax because climate change is a national issue.

Saskatchewan says that while it waits for a decision, it has amended regulations so the PST won’t be charged on the carbon tax on electricity bills.

Saskatchewan’s PST is currently not applied to natural gas.

“Even as our government is fighting this harmful tax in court, the federal government is imposing their carbon tax on Saskatchewan families, communities and businesses,” Premier Scott Moe said in a release.

“While the federal government is making you pay GST on top of this tax starting today, our government has ensured that you will not be paying PST on the federal carbon tax.”

Manitoba announced last month that it won’t be charging its PST on top of the carbon tax on home-heating bills.