Tax change would offer incentive

Karla MacFarlane, Pat Dunn and I are proud that Jamie Baillie announced the “Earned Rate Reduction” as part of the plan to lower corporate taxes. This idea took root here in Pictou County during an economic development roundtable of sorts (with Paul Clayfield).

The actual announcement was another step along the journey from idea to solution. All along the way we: listened, discussed, worked through issues and improved it until there was something solid, something worth announcing. We will continue to make this better but we’re pretty excited about it.

We need lower corporate and personal taxes in this province. This idea (for now at least) focuses on corporate taxes. Our current tax structure hurts our ability to attract and keep job creating companies. We can’t compete. Yet, every time we say, “lower the taxes” the McNeil Liberals say, “we can’t, we need the money.”

This is our response to that old Liberal mantra of “we can’t just lower taxes.” In an aha moment we mused: suppose a company earns $20 this year and pays $8 in taxes; next year, they earn $25, but still pay the $8 in taxes… in order words, what if prosperous companies could ‘earn’ their way to a lower rate?

In this way, government still collects the same amount ($8) – they just don’t get more. This forces government to live within its means. At the same time, it rewards success and lets those companies continue to grow and create jobs. Hence, the birth of the “Earned Rate Reduction.”

It’s still a work in progress but it is an idea focused on growing. Isn’t that more interesting than the tired old ideas of cutting and cutting? Yes, we face challenges but, yes, there are solutions. Let’s focus on those.

Tim Houston

MLA, Pictou East