(Quebec) During the election campaign, François Legault denounced Québec Solidaire’s proposal to overtax polluting vehicles. But with a new law, his government will give cities the power to impose vehicle registration based on their gasoline consumption.
This new power materialized on Tuesday with the tabling of a series of amendments to the bill on municipal taxation, which must be adopted this Friday. It will allow cities to impose “a tax on the registration of passenger vehicles” on their territory.
The Legault government said it wanted to give cities with transport companies the taxing power already granted to the Metropolitan Community of Montreal (CMM) to finance public transport.
But on Tuesday evening, members of the opposition parties learned that cities would have a lot of latitude in the application of this tax, also conferred on MRCs offering adapted transport or collective transport services.
Quebec solidaire MP Andrés Fontecilla asked the Minister of Municipal Affairs, Andrée Laforest, if cities could “tax more on a large vehicle that has very high fuel consumption.” She answered in the affirmative.
No ceiling
The government says that cities will be able to “modulate the amount of the tax according to the type of vehicle and the impact it has on the road”.
PHOTO EDOUARD PLANTE-FRÉCHETTE, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Solidarity deputy Andrés Fontecilla
I note that in a way, by another route, almost a year later, we are returning to a proposal that my political party made which was pejoratively described as an orange tax.
Andrés Fontecilla, deputy for Québec solidaire
“We are opening the possibility of an increase in a tax depending on the engine capacity of a car. We open the door to increased taxation depending on the size and power of the vehicle. I am astonished and pleasantly surprised,” said Mr. Fontecilla.
“It’s good that you came here today,” replied Mr.me Laforest.
Currently, there is only one such tax, managed by the CMM. Starting in 2024, the amount billed to motorists in this group of municipalities will be $59, regardless of the size of the vehicle. The CMM did not understand that it could adjust the prices according to the vehicle, but it is observing the work of the commission with interest. The law also does not provide a ceiling for this tax.
“There is no maximum, it is the city that will determine it,” continued Minister Andrée Laforest.
Liberal Virginie Dufour also approves of the CAQ proposal. It was the PLQ which offered the power of taxation to the CMM in 2016. Mme Dufour could not help but denounce this change of heart by the Coalition Avenir Québec, and provided an anthology of quotes from CAQ elected officials who denounced this measure at the time.
It is not up to middle-class citizens, already overtaxed, to foot the bill, especially since the daily reality of many of these families does not allow them to use public transportation.
Nathalie Roy, in 2016
The Liberals are still outsourcing tax increases to municipalities. It’s not as if municipalities ultimately have more money to finance public transit. The balance remains negative.
Mario Laframboise, in 2016
This bill is an attack on the taxpayers of Montérégie, it’s hard to believe.
Jean-François Roberge, in 2016
“Hypocrite”
Mme Dufour then wondered if the CAQ caucus had lined up behind this measure. She believes that the Legault government is “pushing into the hands of municipalities the odiousness of taxing all kinds of things” and that in the meantime, it is offering a “gift” of $100 on a driver’s license – a loss of income of $600 millions for the Quebec state. “It should have gone to public transport,” argued Mme From the oven.
Minister Andrée Laforest responds that she is responding to the requests of the Union of Municipalities of Quebec and the City of Quebec. “It’s 2023. There have been discussions with [la ministre des Transports] Geneviève Guilbault. […] In 2023, other cities have requested it. Cities asked for diversification, how to diversify their income. We allow it, that’s it,” she explained.
But for the supportive Etienne Grandmont, it is a “fearful and hypocritical” gesture.
They criticized our proposals during the election campaign, and they are now giving this responsibility to the municipalities. Are we going to start talking about blue taxes? Because it looks like that.
Etienne Grandmont, member of Québec solidaire
Mr. Grandmont believes that public transportation should be the responsibility of the Quebec state, just like the management and maintenance of the road network.
In 2022, the Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility (MTQ) admitted that it was studying the possibility of taxing the most polluting vehicles, but the Legault government closed the door in the short term.
The Prime Minister’s spokesperson, Ewan Sauves, told Radio-Canada that these were “only scenarios, looked at by the MTQ in the long term.” “We immediately rule out increasing the tax burden on Quebecers. Period,” he said.
M’s officeme Laforest redirected questions from The Press to the office of the Minister of Transport and Sustainable Mobility, Geneviève Guilbault. Its director of communications, Maxime Roy, emphasizes that “this is a long-standing request from municipalities”. “They will themselves determine the parameters of this additional income source and will obviously have to justify their choices to their citizens,” he indicated.