The number of Top One Percent taxpayers in Canada has remained virtually unchanged since Parliament introduced a 33% federal tax rate, records show. Introduction of the highest tax bracket followed the 2012 Occupy Movement, according to Blacklock's Reporter..The Canada Revenue Agency in an Inquiry Of Ministry tabled in the House of Commons said fewer than 400,000 filers reported Top One Percent taxable incomes over $200,000. Figures were released by request of Conservative MP Adam Chambers (Simcoe North, Ont.)..When asked, “Broken down by year since 2016, what is the total number of people who filed income tax returns broken down by income tax bracket?” the Inquiry said:.• In 2016 a total 338,470 tax filers reported income over $200,000;• In 2017 the number totaled 375,420 tax filers;• In 2018 the number totaled 385,780;• In 2019 the number totaled 394,040;• In 2020 the number totaled 389,660;• “Data for tax year 2021 are still being collected.”.The Department of Finance in a 2016 submission to the House of Commons finance committee said it expected about 400,000 tax filers would pay the top rate. “It is about 400,000,” testified Miodrag Jovanovic, then-director of tax policy..“Going forward what are your estimates?” asked Conservative MP Ron Liepert (Calgary Signal Hill). “It is projected to go up,” replied Jovanovic..The Liberal Party in 2015 campaigned on the Top One Percent tax hike following Occupy Movement demonstrations in Halifax, Montréal, Toronto, Regina, Calgary, Vancouver and Victoria. The increase took effect January 1, 2016 raising the top federal rate on personal income tax from 29 to 33%..The finance department at the time publicly claimed the tax increase was worth $2 billion a year. The estimate was dismissed in Access To Information memos. “I don’t know how they are able to come up with these numbers while we could not,” wrote a Revenue Agency staffer. “That is puzzling.”.Analysts at the time cautioned higher tax brackets on wealthier people typically generate less revenue than expected..“Revenue growth from the new tax might be as low as $1 billion a year, significantly less than what is currently anticipated,” Craig Alexander, then-chief economist with the Conference Board of Canada, testified at 2016 Commons finance committee hearings..“From an economy-wide point of view you’re really not going to make a difference in income inequality,” said Alexander. “There are so few people in the top one percent that, even if you put in the tax rate that took away 80 percent of all their income and spread it across all the rest of the 99 percent, you actually really wouldn’t move the needle.”
