Page 19 - Newcom

BUSINESS 19
Ontario Liberals hike fuel taxes
But infrastructure will get a spending boost
TORONTO, ONTARIO
The Ontario Liberals introduced a provincial budget Feb. 25 that will punish energy consumers but invest more heavily into infrastructure.
Fuel will increase by 4.3 cents a litre under the province’s carbon cap-and- trade program, which aims to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 80% by 2050. Natural gas will also in- crease in price. The province says it will spend the $1.9 billion the program is expected to generate annually on GHG-reducing programs and initia- tives. The Ontario Trucking Associa- tion (OTA) said in a release it sees an opportunity here for some of these funds to be directed towards help-
ing the trucking industry adopt more environmentally friendly equipment such as natural gas-fuelled trucks and electric-powered engines and reefers.
The OTA welcomed the announce- ment the province will step up fund- ing of key infrastructure projects over the next decade.
Infrastructure projects include:
the creation of high-occupancy toll (HOT) lanes in the Greater Toronto Area; the widening of a stretch of Hwy. 400 from eight to 10 lanes; the widen- ing of a stretch of Hwy. 410 from six to 10 lanes; improved road maintenance and snow clearing on northern high- ways; and $550-million in additional spending on northern highways, in- cluding a four-lane expansion of
Hwy. 69 south of Sudbury and Hwy. 11/17 east of Thunder Bay.
Small, rural and northern munici- palities will also get more funding to shore up roads and bridges.
The province announced it will drop the $30 Drive Clean fee for emissions tests. It also vowed to streamline the is- suing of superload permits for escort vehicles. The province also formal-
ly announced it is moving ahead with the Ontario Retirement Pension Plan (ORPP), which will be launched in 2018.
The Canadian Federation of Inde- pendent Business (CFIB) panned the budget, accusing the Liberals of “tax- ing the jobs for tomorrow and today.” It noted 90% of small businesses in Ontario oppose the ORPP, with 70% of them claiming the plan will require them to freeze or cut staff salaries.
“Not only is the government com- pletely ignoring small businesses’ ORPP concerns, it is also turning a blind eye on its own polling and research which clearly show that the ORPP will be a job killer,” said Plamen Petkov, CFIB’s On- tario vice-president. “Delaying the first wave of ORPP implementation by a year was a good move, but relying on po- tential cuts in workers’ compensation premiums to offset the ORPP impact is neither prudent nor sufficient. At a min- imum the budget should have pushed back ORPP implementation for small and medium-sized employers, which are still set to be hit with the new pen- sion tax in 2018 and 2019.”
Petkov also decried the cap-and-trade scheme, which he said will allow major polluters to “play a credit trading shell game,” while small businesses shell out more for fuel and heating. Ontario will incur a $4.3-billion deficit, bringing its total debt to $308.3 billion.
Pack more payload with the new CBX46 with 46,000 lb. capacity, and the new CBX50 with an even larger 50,000 lbs of capacity.
The CBX46 and CBX50 are built with a strength enchance suspension, and a rubust slider sub- frame design for on/off highway applications.
Specify optional INTEGRAL® P89 disc brakes for maximum braking advantage.
Both new units will gallop past your expectations for increased payload and performance.
© 2016 SAF-HOLLAND, Inc. All rights reserved.
Digitally modified image–no horses were injured or harmed in the creation of this advertisement.
SAF CBX46 & CBX50
Slider Suspension Axle Systems
Optional Disc Brakes
TRUCKING INSURANCE SPECIALISTS
Competitive Pricing | Fleet & Owner-operator Programs | Personalized Service
CONTEST!
WIN: A two night trip to Niagara on the Lake... only for truckers!
How to enter
Come and meet us at booth 1613, hall 1, at Truck World (April 14th, 15th and 16th, 2016) and:
• Ask us for a quotation
• Existing clients of Burrowes will be automatically entered upon visiting our booth 1613.
Prize includes
• 2 nights in a hotel in the beautiful town of Niagara on the Lake
• A tour of a winery
The contest ends April 17th, 2016. The draw will be on June 16th, 2016.
CARDINAL 888-657-3329 HAMILTON 888-690-0010
RUN LIGHT
PACK MORE PAYLOAD
CBX46 & CBX50 – THE LIGHTER, STRONGER SLIDER SUSPENSION SYSTEMS
www.safholland.ca 519-537-3494
CBX46-50 JrHalfPG-TN.indd 1
3/7/16 4:15 PM