SUBMISSION to the Commission on Tax Competitiveness

The Business Council's submission to the B.C. Commission on Tax Competitiveness covers a number of topics related to the Commission’s mandate to develop “recommendations about improvements to enhance competitiveness and stimulate economic growth through increased productivity, investment and job creation.”

• The first section provides a brief overview of trends in private sector capital investment and notes that BC is lagging in this critically important area.
• The second section assesses the current state of tax competitiveness in the province. Here the picture is mixed. Although BC has low statutory tax rates, a more comprehensive assessment indicates the province is uncompetitive (in terms of taxes) for a number of industries, including natural resource industries, manufacturers and major segments of the overall export economy.
• The final section of the submission summarizes our recommendations for tax reform in the province. We see considerable scope for improvement in the design and application of the provincial sales tax (PST), and this is our primary focus.
• We also have recommendations touching on the carbon tax and the local property taxes.