The CTF's lawyers argued that the carbon tax is unconstitutional. For example, it allows the prime minister to impose or raise the carbon tax without a parliamentary vote which violates the constitutionally enshrined principle of "no taxation without representation." Additionally, the CTF lawyers that the federally imposed carbon tax is unlikely to meet its stated objective, and instead, will just be another tax placed on the taxpayers of Ontario.
The federally imposed carbon tax took effect in Ontario in April, 2019, with carbon pricing set at $20 per tonne, which will escalate to $50 per tonne by 2022. By then, the carbon tax will cost Ontarians over
11 cents per litre of gasoline. The carbon tax is the fifth tax governments have placed on fuel in Ontario, and it's subject to sales taxes--meaning Ontarians pay sales tax on the carbon tax.
The parliamentary budget officer has
stated that the federal government would have to raise the price of carbon by more than double its current 2022 target to $102 per tonne in order to achieve Canada's greenhouse gas emissions target under the Paris Agreement. The federal government has
stated it will not increase the carbon tax beyond $50 per tonne.
Ontario is joined by Alberta, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and New Brunswick in opposition to the federally imposed carbon tax. The Saskatchewan Court of Appeal narrowly ruled in the federal government in a split decision in which dissenting judges deemed the carbon tax "
constitutionally repugnant."
"The Canadian Taxpayers Federation is proud to stand up for the people of Ontario and oppose the carbon tax" said Pickel. "We'll continue to fight against the carbon tax and are confident we'll win this battle--both in the Supreme Court of Canada and in the court of public opinion."
