Good, but not great; University of Calgary researchers weigh in on Premier’s climate plan

Two University of Calgary School of Public Policy researchers say the new carbon tax announced on Sunday is good, but it doesn’t go far enough.

Sarah Dobson and Jennifer Winter have been studying the possibility of a tax on emissions in the province for the better part of a year.

After hearing what Premier Rachel Notley unveiled on Sunday, Winter told 660 NEWS that there are a lot of unknowns to her plan.

They call on Notley to do more to help stimulate the economy and take a page out of British Columbia’s playbook in making it revenue-neutral.

“That means through every dollar raised by the carbon tax, the government offsets other tax revenue by a dollar,” said Winter. “The carbon tax is going to make a difference on the economy because all of a sudden we’re taxing something that wasn’t taxed.”

She calls it a step in the right direction but adds more needs to be done.

“What the government has announced is they’re going to have subsidies or rebates for lower-income households, which is great, and they’ve also announced they’re going to have some sort of subsidy or rebates for large emitters and that they’re going to use some of the revenue to re-invest in green infrastructure, energy efficiency etc.”

Winter says B.C. is, every year, outlining how much revenue was raised and by how much other taxes were offset.

“They’re very careful in for every dollar of revenue being raised through the carbon tax, that it is used to lower other taxes in the economy, reducing the impact.”

To see the full report – click Gas-Emitters-Regulation-Winter-Dobson.