Review of Party Platforms
On Tuesday October 14th, 2008, Canadians will choose among political parties and candidates who have expressed a variety of views on public transit and its role in improving our quality of life and building greener, healthier and more successful communities. For the convenience of our members and for voters in general, CUTA has prepared this special bulletin to summarize related information contained either in responses to CUTA questions or from campaign platforms published by the parties.
The information presented below is believed to accurately represent information released by the various parties as of October 10th, 2008.
The following three questions were sent to each of the federal parties in September 2008 in order to generate a consistent and comparable set of responses. At least three political parties - the Liberals, the NDP and the Green party – have recognized the importance of a national transit strategy for Canada.
- Your party has the opportunity to support a shift to transit by putting more buses on the road and providing better urban rail services. Should your party form the next government, what would you do to help Canadians deal with high gas prices and encourage them to switch from cars to transit? Can your party commit to the implementation of tax-exempt status for employer-provided transit benefits?
- Do you agree that the Government of Canada should dedicate significant, sustained dollars to a national transit strategy that reduces traffic gridlock and greenhouse gas emissions by helping Canadians shift from cars to public transit?
- Transit providers welcome new riders, but without new dedicated investment, this kind of increased demand would overwhelm transit systems, many of which are already at or beyond capacity during peak hours. The gas tax fund is already in place, it works, and we all understand it. Will your party get things rolling right now by adding a dedicated top-up to the existing gas tax fund for transit?
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In its 2008 budget, the Conservative government made the Gas Tax Fund – which will be worth $2 billion in 2009-10 – a permanent measure, and set aside up to $ 500 million in support of capital investment to improve public transit. A re-elected Conservative Government led by Stephen Harper will reduce the federal excise tax on diesel and aviation fuel by half - from four cents per litre to two cents per litre - reducing the price of transportation and helping to bring downward pressure on consumer prices. This would represent a savings in transit operating costs of approximately $5 to $10 million per year across Canada. |
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The Liberals have said they will not spend any less than the current commitments of the federal government. They will maintain the $1.9 billion already announced for transit for the years 2009-2012/13 and allocate at least $8.2 billion for the years 2009/10 to 2018/19 for a National Transit Strategy that will enable our cities to expand their systems and green their transit fleets. A Liberal government will develop an Infrastructure Bank as an additional tool to finance infrastructure investment. In addition, the Liberals’ 10-year plan includes the transfer of almost $25 billion, indexed to the GDP, to the municipalities through the federal gas tax transfer. The Liberals will invest the entire amount of any future unanticipated surplus that exceeds the $3-billion contingency reserve into Canada’s infrastructure. Public transit is one of the priorities that qualifies for investment in sustainable infrastructure. The Liberal Green Shift Plan provides an exemption for motor vehicle gasoline, but will implement a pollution tax on diesel fuel, rising to seven cents per litre by year four. This could represent an increase in transit operating costs of approximately $20 to $30 million per year across Canada. |
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The Bloc Québécois was pleased to see the Gas Tax Fund made permanent in the 2008 budget. However, given the financial requirements of Québec municipalities, the Bloc Québécois will continue to pressure the federal government so that five cents of the gas tax is transferred to the municipalities immediately, not starting in the 2009-10 fiscal year as planned. Finally, the Bloc Québécois proposes to change the rules regarding the tax credit for public transit passes in a way, that even if a person doesn’t have sufficient income to claim the tax credit, they could still be allowed to claim a portion of their cost to commute by the federal government. |
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The New Democratic Party (NDP) has promised to invest $4 billion in stable, annual transit funding over the first four years of their program. The plan combines an extra cent from the existing gas tax with revenue raised by the sale of carbon permits to big polluters directly into green transit solutions, beginning at $350 million a year. |
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The Green Party would increase the GST from 5% to 6%, creating an additional $3 billion in revenue annually, dedicated directly to urban infrastructure. Some of this additional funding would be directed toward public transit. The Greens would make transit passes tax-deductible to encourage workers and businesses to use public transit. They would also provide financial support to provinces which provide free public transit passes to people living below the poverty line. The Green Party would change the tax rules to create a Municipal Registered Retirement Savings Plan bond that could be held in RRSPs. The monies could be borrowed by municipalities to invest in critical infrastructure such as transit. |
COMMENTARY
This was the conclusion of a joint public opinion poll commissioned by CUTA and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities in late August 2008. Some 80% of respondents said they want the federal government to dedicate ADDITIONAL gas tax revenues for improved transit. They agreed that there is an urgent need to commit significant new funding to support investment in public transit infrastructure in their communities. Canadians believe transit is a priority and CUTA wants the federal leaders to take on this issue and provide long-term sustainable funding to public transit and adopt changes to transit tax policy to benefit Canadians. In short, public transit must have on-going, permanent funding. While developments during the last Parliament will make a substantial difference, there remains much to be done to address the infrastructure deficit of our transit systems. CUTA is expecting that the transit industry will require $40 billion over the next five years to meet transit renewal and expansion needs.
CUTA is pleased to see that each of the federal party leaders has made announcements and policy statements in support of transit during the current election campaign. In particular, CUTA is reassured that all parties unanimously supported a motion that was included in the 2008 budget that made the Gas Tax Fund - which will be worth $2 billion in 2009-10 - a permanent measure. CUTA also appreciates the fact that three political parties - the Liberals, the NDP and the Green Party - have recognized the importance of a national transit strategy for Canada. They agree with 36% of respondents to the survey who named a national transit strategy as their #1 priority for improving the federal environment strategy.
CUTA is very pleased that at least three parties have committed to extending dedicated transit funding beyond 2008-09. The Liberals have said they will maintain the $1.9 billion already announced for the years 2009-2013 and allocate an additional $8.2 billion for a National transit Strategy over the next ten years. The NDP has promised to invest $4 billion in stable, annual transit funding over the first four years of their program. The Green Party would increase the GST from 5% to 6%, creating an additional $3 billion in revenue annually, dedicated directly to urban infrastructure. Some of this additional funding would be directed toward public transit.
CUTA would like to see the next government add a dedicated top-up to the existing gas tax fund for transit. The gas tax fund is already in place, it works and everyone understands it. These simple changes would allow Canadian transit systems to make solid, reliable plans for long-term growth.
On the issue of transit and taxation, CUTA has long believed that the tax system can be used to encourage a shift from private cars to transit. Under the federal Income Tax Act, benefits such as parking and transit are currently designated as taxable income. In practice, however, the percentage of commuters paying taxes on parking benefits is quite small. A tax exemption would give employers the necessary incentive to offer transit benefits and allow employees choose these benefits without an additional income tax burden.
The Green Party is the only one that endorses the concept of a tax exemption for employer-provided transit benefits. The current tax credit for transit passes at a level of 15% is estimated to cost $240-million annually in foregone revenue to the federal treasury. This compares to an estimated cost in of $13-52-million for a tax exemption for employer-provided transit benefits.
Their complete platforms can be found at the following web links:
The Conservative Party of Canada at www.conservative.ca
The Liberal Party of Canada at www.liberal.ca
The Bloc Québécois at www.blocquebecois.org
The New Democratic Party of Canada at www.ndp.ca
The Green Party of Canada at www.greenparty.ca
Canadian Urban Transit Association
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