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June 22, 2023 - Simple changes to tax rules can improve retirement security for Canadians, as well as make the retirement system more equitable among different classes of savers, according to a new report from the C.D. Howe Institute. In “Strengthening Retirement Income Security: Fairer Tax Rules and More Options Needed,” authors Alexandre Laurin and George Turpie propose retirement-related tax…

August 9, 2023 – Inflation and taxation are a painful mix. Money losing its purchasing power hurts on its own, but tax provisions that ignore inflation can multiply the pain for earners, savers, and recipients of benefits, says a new C.D. Howe Institute report. In “Double the Pain: How Inflation Increases Tax Burdens,” the C.D. Howe Institute’s William B.P. Robson and Alex Laurin identify…

July 20, 2023 – The growth of Canada’s small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) – the engine of our country’s economy – lag behind those in other advanced economies and face hurdles to financing that are dampening their prospects, according to a new report from the C.D. Howe Institute. In “Scaling Up Is Hard To Do: Financing Canadian Small Firms,” authors Miwako Nitani and Aurin Shaila Nusrat…

‘Tis the season for giving, and as the year ends, many Canadians are planning substantial donations. However, they should consider maximizing those donations in 2023 while full tax relief for charitable giving is still guaranteed. The federal government has yet to table its legislation for reforming the alternative minimum tax (AMT), but if it sticks to its commitments laid out in the 2023 budget…

Canadian transportation policy is now operating under a Zero Emissions Vehicle (ZEV) mandate that will soon have a binding effect as Canadians try to purchase their next vehicle, particularly light trucks. A ZEV mandate requires sellers of light vehicles to sell a certain minimum of ZEVs (in effect, electric vehicles or EVs) in a year. The theory is that this minimum requirement will…

With the worst of COVID-19 behind us, the federal government needs to re-focus on long-standing stresses, including tax rules that limit many Canadians from saving as much for retirement as they would like and may need, and that force them to draw their retirement saving down faster than is prudent. MPs and federal public servants have tax-backed plans that guarantee them…