After agreeing to reimburse 70% of the deficit of public transport companies, the Legault government gives at the last minute the power to cities to finance it from the tax on registration.
Tuesday, the Minister of Municipal Affairs, Andrée Laforest, presented an amendment to Bill 39 aimed at allowing cities to impose a new tax on registration.
The tax, the amount of which is not specified, would be levied by the Société de l’assurance automobile du Québec (SAAQ) upon registration or upon renewal.
This is a very last minute change since the detailed study of Bill 39 on municipal taxation must end this Tuesday so that it can be adopted before the end of the session on Friday.
This bill aimed in particular at accelerating the construction of housing has not, until now, addressed the financing of public transport.
Zero impact in the metropolis
This change will have no impact for Montreal since the city has already had this power since 2010. Same thing for the cities of Laval and Longueuil since they are part of the Metropolitan Community of Montreal.
The tabling of this amendment comes as transport companies are facing record deficits. This fall, they pressed the government to pay them $400 million to absorb them. However, the Minister of Transport, Geneviève Guilbault, finally agreed to pay them the equivalent of 70% of the bill, or $265 million.
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