Even those leaders committed to funding transit find it tough when they have to get specific about the recipe. Kathleen Wynne, the Premier of Ontario, has been a strong advocate for transit funding in the Greater Toronto area, but she’s been retreating recently as the next election draws closer. From The Globe:
Wynne rejects hike in sales, gas taxes for transit.
Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne is now rejecting the idea of hiking the harmonized sales tax or gas taxes to raise the funds for new transit lines, a sharp turn away from her previous contention the province was ready for an adult “conversation” on the subject. …
While the Grits do not think either idea is bad policy, they believe both are too unpopular and difficult to sell to the electorate.
The trouble was that government-commissioned studies were solidly behind the measures. A report by provincial transit agency Metrolinx last spring recommended both the HST and gas tax hikes; an expert panel led by former non-profit executive Anne Golden supported an increase to the gas tax in December.
One Liberal source said the government did not do a good enough job “managing” the two expert groups to steer them away from politically unpopular recommendations.
Our Premier, by comparison, is not a strong advocate for transit in Metro – but she also doesn’t want to be seen to be rejecting sufficient funding for transit to keep the region moving. (Roads and bridges – no problem.) So hence the desire to shift the burden to the Mayors, who are now in the midst of coming up with a 10-year plan and proposals for funding.
It looks likely the same scenario will be in play as in Ontario: the Mayors will come up with their recommendations, the Province will reject the politically unpalatable options, the opposition will snipe from the sidelines with no hard choices of their own. And then we’ll have a vote on whatever’s left over.
So what does Anne Golden think?
Ms. Golden said on Thursday that many of her ideas – including a corporate income tax hike and borrowing – are still on the table. With lesser revenue measures, she said, Ms. Wynne still has options to get at least some cash for her plans.
“It won’t be the whole loaf, but even if it’s half a loaf, we’ll get moving and we’ll get started and I think she’s committed to that,” Ms. Golden said.
The danger is B.C. is that all we’ll be left with are the crumbs.
The easy solution is a road toll. Why are use of roads by and large free ? Gasoline charge is also an option, but less and less effective with new, more efficient cars, LNG trucks or e-cars. Road tolls make total sense, more so than taxing butter, home sales or kids toys via a higher PST or local sales tax.
Another measure, of course never mentioned, is a broad cut in civil servants wages that are by and large, with a few exceptions, 30% too high given their job security, but of course no one will touch that subject. Our cost of service delivery is too high and ought to be looked at, too, not just more revenue. Public sector unions extract an unfair price from tax paying public as they have no choice. Please view Ms Clark’s opposition to many revenue measures also in this light !
We need both: more revenue and lower services delivery costs.