Premiers want more from pot tax haul

Ottawa proposes splitting 10 per cent sales tax revenues with provinces 50-50

OTTAWA— Ottawa wants to impose a 10-per-cent tax on marijuana sales and split the revenues with the provinces but premiers want a bigger slice, arguing their jurisdictions are bearing most of the costs of implementing and policing the federal government’s plan to legalize pot.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau used a meeting of provincial and territorial leaders Tuesday to table Ottawa’s proposal for a federal excise tax on marijuana when it becomes legal next July1. Under the plan, each gram of marijuana would have a tax of $1 on sales up to $10 and a 10-percent tax on sales worth more than $10. Tax revenues would be split 50/ 50 with the provinces.

But that revenue-sharing proposal rankled premiers who have voiced worries about Ottawa’s timeline to legalize pot, as well their own costs to set up the retail system to sell it and added policing costs to enforce laws such as impaired driving.

B.C. Premier John Horgan said the tax proposal “caught us a bit by surprise” and complained that provinces — facing costs in distributions, regulation and enforcement — may now have to share “whatever modest” revenue there might be.

“I think many Canadians believe if we can tax this product, we’re going to be swimming in cash, but that’s just not been the experience in the United States. It’s not likely to be the experience here,” Horgan said. That was echoed by Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister, who said that provinces and the federal government are headed into uncharted territory. With files from Tonda MacCharles