EDMONTON, AB: A new report from the City of Edmonton shows a carbon tax will take $5 million away from essential municipal services to help finance massive new spending under the NDP government, the Wildrose Official Opposition said.The numbers were calculated as part of the City of Edmonton’s newly released adjustment for 2016-2018. A section of the report entitled External Factors shows that over the next two years alone, $5 million has been added to the city budget in extra costs to buildings, fuel and natural gas because of the NDP’s carbon tax.
“The NDP don’t seem to realize that there is only one taxpayer, and their risky carbon tax is adding further burden onto Albertans at the municipal level,” Wildrose Leader Brian Jean said. “With our current economic downturn, this is a tax Albertans simply can’t afford. The NDP need to scrap this tax.”
Other municipalities have spoken out against the NDP carbon tax, including 93 per cent of delegates at the recent Alberta Association of Municipal Districts and Counties convention voting in favour of an exemption, and the vice-chair of the City of Calgary’s Priorities and Finance Committee stating that the carbon tax “really needs to be thought out better.”
“It’s clear as day that our municipal partners are asking for this carbon tax to be scrapped, just as hardworking Albertans across our province are,” Jean said. “We are running out of time before the January 1, 2017 implementation for the NDP government to wake up to our current fiscal reality and scrap this tax.”
Wildrose has repeatedly called on the NDP government to hold a referendum on the $3 billion carbon tax they did not campaign on.