The cost of administering Canada’s federal carbon tax and rebate system is set to reach $796 million by 2030, according to government records obtained by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF).Since its implementation in 2019, the carbon tax scheme has already cost taxpayers $283 million, with $84 million spent in 2023 alone. Last year, 461 federal bureaucrats were tasked with overseeing the program, according to records released in response to an order paper question by Conservative MP John Barlow (Foothills).“Not only does the carbon tax make our gas, heating, and groceries more expensive, but taxpayers are also hit with a big bill to fund Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s battalion of carbon tax bureaucrats,” said Franco Terrazzano, CTF’s federal director. “Trudeau should make life more affordable and slash the cost of the bureaucracy by scrapping the carbon tax.”From 2024 to 2030, administration costs are projected to rise by an additional $513 million. However, the records exclude expenses related to programs like the Fuel Charge Tax Credit for Farmers and the Canada Carbon Rebate for Small Businesses, suggesting the true cost may be even higher.“It’s magic math to believe the feds can raise taxes, skim hundreds-of-millions off the top to hire hundreds of new bureaucrats, and then somehow make everyone better off with rebates,” Terrazzano added.The Parliamentary Budget Officer (PBO) has previously reported that the carbon tax costs households an average of $399 more annually than they receive in rebates. Additionally, the PBO highlighted that Canada’s emissions are too small to have a material impact on global climate change.Compounding the financial burden, the federal government charges GST on top of the carbon tax. This “tax-on-tax” is expected to cost Canadians $400 million this year, none of which is rebated.The carbon tax currently adds 17 cents per litre to gasoline, 21 cents to diesel, and 15 cents per cubic metre of natural gas. By 2030, these costs are expected to rise to 37 cents per litre for gasoline, 45 cents for diesel, and 32 cents per cubic metre of natural gas.The growing administrative costs and rising tax burden have prompted calls for a reevaluation of the program. “Canadians deserve transparency and affordability, not endless bureaucracy and mounting costs,” said Terrazzano.
