Albertans, including those living in Red Deer, are paying less in gas tax than anywhere else in Canada, says the Canadian Taxpayers Federation.
The federation has released its 25th annual Gas Tax Honesty Report, which shows Albertans pay 31 cents in taxes per litre of gasoline – this is the lowest gas tax rate in the country.
“The reason we put out a Gas Tax Honesty Report is because quite often government doesn’t want honesty in gas taxes. They don’t like us knowing what we’re paying in gas taxes,” CTF’s Alberta director Kris Sims said during a media conference in Red Deer on Thursday.
“Here in Alberta, we have the benefit of having the lowest fuel prices in all of Canada because we have lowest fuel taxes in all of Canada.
“We pay about 31 centre per litre of gas taxes – that’s because we pay no provincial fuel taxes. Every tax you’re paying at those pumps is federal. Alberta is unique in that way because we have the fuel tax suspended here in Alberta, so we’re saving 13 cents per litre in gasoline and diesel.”
Filling up a light-duty pickup truck in Red Deer costs about $35, just for gasoline taxes. That same fill-up in Vancouver costs about $88 in taxes. The $53 price difference between the two cities is caused by B.C.’s excise tax, Vancouver’s transit tax and B.C.’s second carbon tax.
In Alberta a litre of gasoline carries a 14.3-cent federal carbon tax, a 10-cent federal excise tax and a 6.7-cent federal sales tax, adding up to a total of 31 cents per litre in gas tax.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has fully suspended the provincial fuel tax, saving drivers 13 cents per litre of gasoline and diesel.
“We’re getting calls quite frequently of working people who are just tapped out,” said Sims.
“I got a call from a gentleman who said he’s using a food bank for the first time in his life. That’s here in Alberta and we’ve got it better than most of the rest of the country when it comes to affordability.”
Sims said the federation is thanking the provincial government for suspending the provincial fuel taxes and warning people about the federal government’s plan to triple in the next seven years.
Canadian Taxpayers Federation’s 2023 Gas Tax Honesty Report can be found on www.taypayer.com.
sean.mcintosh@reddeeradvocate.com
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