Local fuel tax could start in 2010
Email
Print
Letter to Editor
Share
Updated: July 10, 2009 5:02 PM
An Abbotsford gas tax, geared towards raising millions for local roads and transit projects, could take effect at the start of 2010.
While admitting that time frame may be ambitious, Abbotsford Mayor George Peary told The News yesterday he would like to see a two cents per litre fuel charge introduced early next year. That two cents would generate approximately $6 million annually, according to City of Abbotsford estimates.
The gas tax would automatically increase the amount of money Abbotsford drivers pay at the pump. It is the mayor’s hope to use all of the money on local transit, and on maintaining the 1,000 kilometres of roads that sit within the city’s boundaries.
Any Abbotsford gas tax would need the support of the provincial government and of city council. The City of Abbotsford is also in discussions with Chilliwack and Mission, Peary said, in order to make the program regional rather than specific to Abbotsford.
The city needs the extra money as quickly as possible, said Peary, pointing out it is already behind in road programs.
As well as improving transportation infrastructure, Peary said the new levy could have some other benefits.
People who do not drive would not pay, he said, while out-of-towners who fill up in Abbotsford would be charged the fees.
Even so, the mayor recognized the initiative would be controversial.
“We take no delight in finding another tax for taxpayers, but we are desperately trying to find enough money to meet the changes that the city is facing,” he said.
On Wednesday, Abbotsford’s chamber of commerce said it would back a local fuel tax. Chamber board chairman Sir James Barlow said he recognized that it would be unpopular, but may be necessary to supplement the money being collected by the city in property tax.
David Hull, the chamber’s executive director, has already penned a letter to council expressing the group’s support for a local fuel tax – providing it is only used for transportation-related projects.
The municipal property tax system in B.C. was established, Hull said, to pay for police and fire, recreation services, transportation, sewer and water.
It was not designed to pay for services that have since been “downloaded” onto municipalities by senior government, said Hull, which is why cities now need to find ways to collect extra revenue.
v2
