There should not be a U-turn on Alberta’s fiscal journey – Calgary Herald Op-Ed
Alberta’s government will table its 2020-21 budget on Feb. 27. Its previous budget in October mapped out the government’s fiscal path to return to budget balance by 2022-23, including annual spending targets by program area. The government’s freeze on topline program spending translates into real per capita reductions in spending, particularly in health and education.
These targets are necessary to bring Alberta’s program spending in-line with nationwide benchmarks and to return Alberta to a sustainable fiscal path. However, while the government laid out its long-term plan in October, this budget must clearly specify measures for restructuring spending.
The challenge will be to implement spending reductions in the face of…
Benjamin Dachis on BNN – Alberta budget 2020
Benjamin Dachis, Director of Public Affairs at C.D. Howe Institute, joins BNN Bloomberg for instant reaction to the Alberta budget release.
S2 E3 – Austerity and the Economy
When does it make sense to cut spending to reduce government debt? The answer from Harvard’s Alberto Alesina may surprise you, and he tells host Michael Hainsworth it has everything to do with investor confidence. Allan Lanthier – Ottawa Should Forget About Limiting Interest Expense Deductibility
From: Allan Lanthier To: The Department of Finance Date: February 19, 2020 Re: Ottawa should forget about limiting interest expense deductibility The Liberals promised in the fall campaign to limit a corporation’s deductible interest expense to 30 percent of earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) if annual interest expense exceeds $250,000. It would […] Martin Eichenbaum – Going Unconventional On Fiscal Policy As A Recession-fighting Tool
From: Martin Eichenbaum To: Finance Minister Bill Morneau Date: February 11, 2020 Re: Going Unconventional on Fiscal Policy as a Recession-Fighting Tool Canada and the rest of the developed world have entered an era of low interest rates and sluggish growth. We should expect interest rates to remain low by historical standards when the next recession occurs. Since the […] Jack Mintz – The Little-noticed Tax Deductibility Attack On Corporations
From: Jack Mintz To: Canadians concerned about investment Date: February 4, 2020 Re: The little-noticed tax deductibility attack on corporations An intriguing Liberal party platform promise to limit corporate interest deductibility seems set to return as we get closer to this spring’s federal budget. Even though making corporations pay more tax is politically popular, they account for the lion’s […] Jumpstarting Municipal Investment Returns – The Prudent Thing to Do
From: Patrick Gill To: Canadian taxpayers Date: January 30, 2020 Re: Jumpstarting Municipal Investment Returns – The Prudent Thing to Do All levels of government in Canada invest funds they don’t immediately require. These investments are a significant source of revenue for public coffers. Without this revenue stream, taxes would be higher or service levels […] Benjamin Dachis – Fixing Oil And Gas Property Tax Problems Through Regional Governance Reform
From: Benjamin Dachis To: The Alberta Ministers of Municipal Affairs, Energy, and Treasury Board and Finance Date: January 29, 2020 Subject: Fixing oil and gas property tax problems through regional governance reform There’s a property tax revolt coming to Alberta. With oil and gas companies under financial distress, many cannot afford to pay eye-watering business […] Benjamin Dachis on The Agenda–The Future of Municipal Finance
Benjamin Dachis, Director of Public Affairs of the C.D. Howe Insitute, joins TVO’s The Agenda to discuss how cities will finance their futures to ensure they thrive as they grow.
Nick Pantaleo – Improving Ottawa’s Changes To The Tax Treatment Of Employee Stock Options – Part II
From: Nick Pantaleo To: The Hon. Bill Morneau, Minister of Finance Date: January 13, 2020 Re: Improving Ottawa’s Changes to the Tax Treatment of Employee Stock Options – Part II In Budget 2019, the federal government announced its intention to correct a significant inequity of the Canadian personal tax system: the employee stock option deduction […] William B.P. Robson – Toronto’s Property Tax Hike – Because A $1.4 Billion Surplus Isn’t Big Enough?
From: William B.P. Robson To: Toronto taxpayers Date: January 10, 2020 Re: Toronto’s property tax hike – because a $1.4 billion surplus isn’t big enough? Late last year, Toronto City Council approved an extraordinary property tax hike – an additional 1.0 percent in 2020 and 2021 on top of a previously approved 0.5-percent increase, and a full 1.5 […] William B.P. Robson – A Professional Nag Pauses To Reflect
From: William B.P. Robson To: Fellow Canadians Date: January 7, 2020 Re: A Professional Nag Pauses to Reflect We at the C.D. Howe Institute devote much of our daily attention to criticizing poorly conceived and ineptly implemented policy in Canada. As we should. That’s our job. And our governments keep us all too well supplied. When William Watson asked […]