CRA kept ‘carbon tax unit’ after consumer tax scrapped
Administration of the federal carbon tax and rebate system has cost Canadian taxpayers $283 million since 2019.
The Canada Revenue Agency is retaining hundreds of employees in its carbon tax unit despite Prime Minister-designate Carney's announcement to eliminate the consumer carbon tax.
“We will be eliminating the consumer fuel charge immediately, immediately,” Carney told reporters March 14. Canadians will receive one final rebate in the coming weeks.
Blacklock’s repeatedly asked the Revenue Agency about the future of its carbon tax unit, but management refused to comment.
“What will become of the employees assigned to processing the tax and rebates, and what will be done with the millions in annual expense?” asked the publication. There was no response was forthcoming, leaving the public and taxpayers in the dark about the agency’s plans.
The lack of openness raises questions about potential staff reallocations, redundancies, or the possibility that the infrastructure established for the carbon tax might quietly endure in some capacity.
Mark Carney blames Canadians for not understanding the "positive impacts" of the carbon tax, saying this has made it a "divisive issue" and accuses Pierre Poilievre of spreading "misinformation and lies" about the Liberals' flagship policy.https://t.co/Dex0gKlx3T pic.twitter.com/BxBqAazyrn
— Rebel News (@RebelNewsOnline) January 31, 2025
According to the Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF), the administration of the federal carbon tax and rebate system has cost Canadian taxpayers $283 million since 2019. The program's impact was questioned with costs projected to reach $796 million by 2030.
“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 said last November 19.
CTF records, obtained in response to an order paper question from Conservative MP Chris Warkentin, revealed that 474 federal employees administered the carbon tax in 2023, costing $82.6 million, reported Blacklock’s.
He asked, “What were the annual costs to administer collection of the carbon tax and rebate program?” The Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act incurred $199.2 million in administrative costs between 2019 and 2022.
However, the true financial impact on taxpayers could be higher as the figures exclude costs associated with the Fuel Charge Tax Credit for Farmers and the Canada Carbon Rebate for Small Businesses.
No carbon tax layoffs here: @CanRevAgency refuses comment on continued employment of a battalion of clerks assigned to processing tax cheques & rebates: "What were the annual costs?" https://t.co/CbnKv3hMfC #cdnpoli pic.twitter.com/Gk3Xzhz900
— Blacklock's Reporter (@mindingottawa) March 21, 2025
Taxpayer advocates repeatedly called on the Liberal government to “slash the cost of the bureaucracy” by scrapping the carbon tax. Prime Minister Mark Carney finally relegated the consumer carbon tax on March 14 to zero dollars through an Order-in-Council.
The consumer tax is expected to be replaced with a comparable charge on industrial emitters, which will ultimately be passed on to consumers.
The carbon tax cost households $399 more than they received in rebates last year, with Canada's emissions being too small to impact climate change, according to the Parliamentary Budget Officer (PBO).
The carbon tax was further compounded by the federal Goods and Services Tax (GST), which is applied on top of the levy. The PBO estimates this tax-on-tax will cost taxpayers $400 million in 2023—money that is not rebated back to Canadians.
"Mark Carney thinks Canadians are stupid": Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre slams the "same Liberal gang" for trying to fool Canadians with a "carbon tax con job" that will continue driving up the cost of living. pic.twitter.com/balIAxd0kN
— Rebel News (@RebelNewsOnline) March 14, 2025
Meanwhile, Environment and Climate Change Canada has been criticized for not explaining how carbon taxes reduce emissions, with a department manager admitting the tax had “minimal impact”.
“Is it possible to meet emissions targets without a carbon tax?” asked Conservative MP Dan Mazier last November 25. “Yes, it is theoretically possible,” replied Jerry DeMarco, the Environment Commissioner.
A 2023 report from the Commissioner depicted federal climate programs as “guesswork”, noting that Liberal governments circa 2015 have never met an emissions target. Canada is the only G7 country that has not achieved any emission reduction targets since 1990.
Alex Dhaliwal
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Alex Dhaliwal is a Political Science graduate from the University of Calgary. He has actively written on relevant Canadian issues with several prominent interviews under his belt.
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COMMENTS
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Bernhard Jatzeck commented 2025-03-24 23:27:24 -0400Why give up a well-paying scam? -
Bruce Atchison commented 2025-03-24 19:33:56 -0400This shows that the Liberals have zero intention of eliminating the carbon tax. They want to fool enough sheeple to believe they won’t be hurt by a corporate tax. But we who know how to think know that costs are ALWAYS passed down to consumers. It isn’t the industries that pay in the end but us.
