I ask your assistance in requesting that Canada’s Minister of Finance, the Honourable Jim Flaherty, accept this proposal:
Canada should continue to collect both the PST and GST on the 80 per cent of goods and services to which PST applied before HST was implemented, and remit the PST portion to B.C. All of the job-creators in the 80 per cent component will thus continue to avoid the administrative duplication and cost of having to keep two sets of books for PST and GST. They also will avoid the cost of changing their computer systems back, estimated at $1,200.00 per business average, for Small Businesses.
Canada loses nothing; B.C. does not collect PST on the 20 per cent, either way.
Canada will keep our (former) tax collectors on the payroll.
There will be no need for Canada to require collection of the $1.6 billion incentive payment from B.C.
This idea has been presented to Mr. Flaherty by both the Honourable Kevin Falcon, B.C.’s Minister of Finance, and by the B.C. Caucus of the Conservative Party of Canada.
Presently, his concern is that Canada does not want to deal with the hassles of exemptions and appeals on the PST; one cannot fault him for that! However, he can delegate administration of those to B.C. we would have to handle them anyway, if collecting PST on our own.
Minister Falcon has advised me that he will be pleased to take this approach, if Canada will agree.
Please write to Mr. Flaherty at: jim.flaherty@parl.gc.ca if you support this approach.
Kevin Krueger
MLA, Kamloops-South Thompson