By Kamloops-North Thompson MLA Peter Milobar

Expect a bigger property tax bill, courtesy the NDP

Jan 9, 2019 | 3:17 PM

WITH 19 NEW OR INCREASED TAXES being imposed by the NDP since taking office, there’s no doubt British Columbians will be hit hard in the pocketbook in 2019.

Residents and businesses can expect to pay more income and corporate tax. You’ll also spend more to fuel your vehicle, and pay new premiums to ICBC for ‘learner’ drivers or to let someone else use your car.

But perhaps the most egregious among the new taxes is the NDP’s Employer Health Tax (EHT). Don’t be fooled into thinking this new payroll tax for businesses won’t affect you. Not only will it cast a heavy burden on small and medium-sized businesses – which in turn will hurt our economy – but its effects will definitely trickle down to the average British Columbian.

That’s because local governments are among the entities being slapped with this new tax which will replace MSP premiums. And that will no doubt impact your property tax bill.

Here in Kamloops, the City reports it will pay $1.2 million more for the EHT, with $500,000 of that coming from its reserves. The rest of it will come from higher taxes. How much higher? The figure we’ve heard is an interim increase of 3.36 per cent— and the EHT as well as other provincially downloaded costs make up about 2 per cent of that. That’s a significant amount that the provincial government has dumped onto the municipality and onto you as the taxpayer.

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The other thing that makes the EHT so unsettling is the government double-dipping that will occur in 2019 for those businesses and organizations that cover their employees’ MSP premiums. Those groups will continue to pay MSP premiums this year, on top of the EHT. After the double-dip in 2019, most businesses will see no relief. This is because the NDP chose to place the tax squarely on businesses. This was done against the advice of their own MSP expert panel, their Small Business Task Force and municipalities.

Not only is the practice of double-dipping unfair – so too is the fact that when the NDP promised to eliminate MSP premiums, there was no indication they would be replaced with a new tax. The NDP told British Columbians half the story, and in 2019 will take double the payout.

It’s pretty rich for a party that preached affordability and relief for British Columbians.