Alberta Challenges Federal Carbon Tax in Court Over Heating Oil Exemption
The government of Alberta is once again taking the federal government to court over the national carbon tax. While the province’s first challenge to the tax was unsuccessful, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith believes the recent exemption for heating oil in Eastern Canada changes the equation.
During the first court challenge of the federal Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that the federal government’s power to tax carbon was constitutional and that the Government of Canada was within its rights to implement minimum national standards for carbon pricing to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but noted that those powers were limited.
Earlier this year, the federal government exempted heating oil from the tax. Since heating oil is used primarily in Eastern Canada, Alberta argues that this creates a double standard that violates the limited powers outlined in the Supreme Court ruling.
“Last year, Ottawa decided Canadians in the East deserved a three-year break from paying the carbon tax on their home heating costs,” said Premier Smith. “Other provinces who heat their homes with natural gas have been deliberately excluded from these savings. Albertans simply cannot stand by for another winter while the federal government picks and chooses who their carbon tax applies to.”
The province’s top lawyer, Justice Minister and Attorney General Mickey Amery, believes the court challenge has merit.
“This exemption is not only unfair to the vast majority of Canadians, but it is also unlawful as the federal government does not have the authority to make special exemptions for certain parts of the country under the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act,” said Amery. “The federal government isn’t even following its own laws now. Someone needs to hold them accountable, and Alberta is stepping up to do just that.”
However, the opposition NDP says the move signals that the provincial government believes the Liberals will be reelected in the next federal election.
“It’s very clear that the premier doesn’t think that Pierre Poilievre is going to win the next federal election if she is tying us up in court for so many years on yet another unwinnable court case,” said NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi.
Nenshi also suggested Premier Smith should be focused on solving the issue of unemployment in Alberta, which sits at a 20-month high. “Alberta has the highest unemployment rate outside of the Maritimes under this UCP government. The only job creation this UCP government is interested in is jobs for lawyers in unwinnable court cases,” Nenshi added.