The 2015 Alberta budget announcement last week has opened up the door for criticism from the public and other political parties, as the 59 tax increases put forth by the PCs mark the official response to what has been noted as Alberta’s largest budget deficit in the province’s modern history ($4.99B).
As the PCs called the ‘tough budget’ the best way to get Alberta back on target, working toward easing reliance on oil and gas revenues, the Eagle caught up with PC Banff-Cochrane MLA Ron Casey for his thoughts on how the 2015 budget is the best answer to the problem.
“I’ve heard that these tax increases are directed at the middle class, but I see virtually nothing directed that way,” said Casey, with specific reference to the two-tiered new tax brackets being introduced.
Taxable income over $100,000 will be taxed at 11.5 per cent once fully implemented after three years, and taxable income over $250,000 will be taxed at 12 per cent by 2018.
The Eagle also caught up with Banff-Cochrane Wildrose MLA candidate Scott Wagner and local NDP candidate Cameron Westhead.
“With the introduction of the 2015 budget, Albertans are raising their hands and waving goodbye to the last remnants of the Alberta advantage,” asserts Westhead, the 37-year-old Bragg Creeker who is a practising registered nurse, who is criticizing the province for blatantly admitting to the deficit as a result of ‘mismanaged funds’ only to put the bill back to the taxpayer.
Other fees that will be going up (some already have) include fuel tax (from nine cents/litre to 13 cents; the first fuel tax increase since 1991); alcohol (22 cents per litre) and tobacco ($5 per carton of 200 cigarettes); many registry fees, including motor vehicle, land titles, mortgages and vital statistics; provincial parks (camping); and traffic fines.
Casey maintains that many of these fees have not been increased for a long time.
“The budget includes 59 taxes that will cost the average family more than $2,500 a year,” said Wagner. “Rather than protecting families, Prentice and the PCs want families to pay for their mismanagement.”
The budget is also making cutbacks to Alberta Health Services (AHS) to address administrative inefficiencies that are contributing to the province spending around $1,300 per person above the national average in 2013-14.
According to the budget speech:
‘Budget 2015 will see a decrease of $160M for health, for a total investment of almost $18.9B; however, $950M in pressures will also need to be absorbed. There is room to adhere to these cost reductions without disrupting the health care system or reducing care to patients.’
“The real story here is there is no intention these cuts will affect the front line staff,” said Casey.
Another budget highlight of note includes a new progressive health levy that will come into effect July 1, 2015 for those earning more than $50,000 taxable (net) income; this levy increases incrementally for top-end earners taking home around $130,000 (net) annually.
“The PCs aren’t offering better health care or shorter wait times in emergency rooms,” said Westhead. “Prentice has rigged the so-called ‘health care levy’ in a way that Albertans will have to pay out of their own pockets, but the money will go toward general revenue and not health care.”
Westhead also noted that ‘the government is slashing funding and almost 1,700 jobs that will most certainly impact patient care’.
While $6.7B will be invested over the next five years in the provincial highway network, including Hwy 63 twinning, Edmonton and Calgary ring roads and road and bridge construction, overall cuts to the 2015-20 Alberta Transportation plan will add up to $1.4B, including cuts to highway maintenance and capital investment.
According to the Alberta Education website, ‘support to education, including school capital, reaches $7.9B, an increase of $285M’. The ministry will reduce administration budget by nine per cent and non-teaching costs (operations) by 2.7 per cent.
“School boards will have to dig deep to meet that,” noted Casey, acknowledging that smaller school boards will struggle with the operational hit more than some of the larger boards.
Westhead noted that classroom supports for K-12 are being cut around $90M, while no hiring for new teachers is on the horizon.
According to the local NDP candidate, a more reasonable solution to get the deficit back on track would be a ‘true progressive income tax and slightly raising corporate taxes closer to the national average’.
The budget included no increases to corporate taxes.
For a detailed report on the budget, visit alberta.ca/budget-highlights.cfm.
