MLA McLeod's Report from the Legislature - Jan. 4, 2024

Below you'll find MLA Tim McLeod's Report from the Legislature for January 4, 2024. 

The views expressed below are solely the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official stance of Golden West.

As the new year begins, our government remains committed to helping Saskatchewan people with affordability challenges. We wanted to remind you of some affordability measures available to Saskatchewan residents this year.

Starting January 1, 2024, SaskEnergy removed the federal carbon tax from natural gas home heating and SaskPower removed it from electrical home heating. This will result in savings for approximately 98 per cent of Saskatchewan families. The federal government’s decision to exempt the carbon tax on home heating oil last fall left Saskatchewan families out in the cold; that’s why our government is protecting Saskatchewan families’ ability to afford to heat their homes this winter.

Customers will see a federal carbon tax charge on January’s utility bills for natural gas or electricity used for heating in the month of December. For usage after January 1, 2024, the federal carbon tax will appear as both a charge and a reversal credit.

If you believe you are incorrectly being charged the federal carbon tax, you can contact SaskEnergy at 1-800-567-8899 or www.saskenergy.com/customer-support, and SaskPower at 1-888-757-6939 or contactus@sk.saskpower.com.

Also helping with affordability this year are Saskatchewan’s low personal taxes and indexation. A family of four with an annual income of $75,000 will save $322 in 2024 as a result of indexing personal income tax. Indexation protects against bracket creep, which are the automatic increases in tax caused by inflation.

A family of four in Saskatchewan now pays no income tax on their first $59,475 of income. When our government took office in 2007, a family of four started paying income tax at $26,150 of income. Reductions our government introduced have more than doubled the tax-free threshold.

Saskatchewan has among the lowest personal taxes in the country. Since 2007, our government’s personal income tax exemptions have removed more than 112,000 people from the province’s income tax roll.

Families in Saskatchewan with children enrolled in sports, arts and cultural activities will continue to be able to claim the Active Families Benefit on their tax returns. The benefit provides a refundable tax credit of $150 per year, per child to eligible families. Families of children with a disability will receive an additional $50 for a total tax credit of $200 per year, per child.

The 2023 budget also provides targeted affordability measures to those who need it most. Saskatchewan Income Supports and Saskatchewan Assured Income for Disability were both increased by six per cent, while the Seniors Income Plan benefit was increased by nine per cent. Monthly personal care home benefits increased by 20 per cent and community-based organizations received an increase of three per cent in annual funding.

Every budget includes $2 billion in affordability measures for Saskatchewan people. These programs, when combined with affordable housing, comparably low utility rates, indexation and low personal taxes demonstrate our government’s commitment to helping keep life affordable for Saskatchewan people.

Together with the people of Saskatchewan, our government looks forward to another year of building and protecting our province. If you have questions or concerns, please reach out to my constituency office at 306-692-8884 or mjnorthmla@sasktel.net.