Ford has delivered billions of dollars of tax relief. Pictured: Ontario Premier Doug Ford. Photo Credit: Doug Ford/X.
The Ford government has delivered billions of dollars of tax relief during its first six years in office.
There’s still more to do to get Ontario’s tax burden down, but it’s worth reviewing the billions of dollars in tax relief Ontarians have enjoyed since Premier Doug Ford took office in 2018.
First, there’s gas tax relief.
Ford promised to cut gas taxes for Ontarians by ending former premier Kathleen Wynne’s cap-and-trade carbon tax and cutting the gas tax by 5.7 cents per litre, during the 2018 election campaign. Combined, those two steps would save Ontarians 10 cents per litre on every fill up.
Ford kept the first part of that promise within months of taking office, scrapping Wynne’s cap-and-trade scheme as one of his first big decisions as premier.
The gas tax cut was a little belated, but in the spring of 2022, Ford announced plans to cut the gas tax by 5.7 cents per litre for six months. That’s saved the average Ontario driver filling up a minivan $5 every time they pull into the gas station, once sales tax savings are factored in.
Ford has since extended that gas tax cut four times. And thanks to Ford’s gas tax cut, Ontarians have saved more than $3 billion. That’s over $1,000 per family.
Second, there’s the end of license plate sticker fees.
In 2022, the Ford government ended the $120 per year licence plate sticker fees for Ontario car owners. For the average two-car family, that represents savings of $240 per year.
This coming March will mark five years of no license plate sticker fees for Ontario families. The average two-car family has saved $1,200 from this measure alone.
Third, there’s road tolls.
The Ford government has banned road rolls in Ontario and rolled back road tolls on Highways 412 and 418. Drivers using those two highways are saving big time, while drivers throughout the rest of the province can have confidence that there are now laws on the books banning future governments from introducing road tolls on major highways.
Municipal and provincial politicians have mused about road tolls for years, so this action from the Ford government is key to protect taxpayers.
Finally, there’s the $200 cheques that will be going out to Ontarians in the coming weeks. Parents will also be getting an additional $200 for each of their kids.
Permanent tax relief is always better than one-off payments. But it’s good to see that the Ford government recognizes that Ontarians are struggling and that now is the time to put Ontarians’ money back in their pockets.
The cheques will amount to $3 billion returned to Ontarians’ pockets.
The Ford government’s job on tax relief is far from finished.
During the 2018 Ontario election, Ford promised to cut middle class income taxes by cutting Ontario’s second income tax bracket by 20 per cent.
That middle-class income tax cut would save taxpayers up to $786 per year. At a time when 50 per cent of Ontarians say they’re $200 away from not being able to pay their bills, now is the time for the Ford government to finally deliver on its promised income tax relief.
The other major tax cut on Ford’s to-do list has to do with gas taxes. So far, Ford’s gas tax cut has been introduced as a temporary measure, with the government extending it roughly once every six months.
The gas tax cut is one of the largest tax cuts in Ontario’s history and has made a meaningful impact on families from Windsor to Kenora.
Yet the biggest problem with a temporary gas tax cut is that a future government can simply choose not to extend it. If Ford wants to entrench his legacy on gas tax cuts, the cut must be made permanent.
Ford has a strong record on tax relief. Instead of getting complacent, now’s the time to build on it.
Jay Goldberg is the Ontario Director at the Canadian Taxpayers Federation. He previously served as a policy fellow at the Munk School of Public Policy and Global Affairs. Jay holds a Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Toronto.
