Here are the highlights of today’s Ontario budget:
— provincial sales tax to be harmonized with the G-S-T as of July 2010, spreading the tax to a number of goods and services not currently subject to the P-S-T. Small range of goods and new homes under 400-thousand dollars continue to be exempt.
— sales tax increase to be offset by special rebates totalling one-thousand dollars for families with an income below 160-thousand dollars; singles with an income below 80-thousand to get 300-dollars.
— sales tax change estimated to save businesses more than 500 (m) million dollars a year.
— sales tax credit and property tax credits enhanced to save taxpayers more than one (b) billion dollars a year by 2011.
— lowest provincial income tax rate falls from 6.05 per cent from 5.05 per cent on January 1st, cutting taxes by up to 205 dollars per filer and 379 dollars per child.
— deficit forecast at 3.9 (b) billion dollars for 2008-09 and 14.1 (b) billion for 2009-10. Total deficit to hit 56.8 (b) billion by 2015.
— 27.5 (b) billion dollars to be spent over two years to improve roads, hospitals and schools, creating and maintaining more than 300-thousand jobs.
— 700 (m) million dollars over two years to be spent on skills training.
— business taxes to be cut by 4.5 (b) billion dollars over three years starting July 2010.
— cost-cutting measures include a pay freeze for M-P-P’s for 2009-10 and cutting the size of the Ontario public service by five per cent over three years.
— total program spending in 2009-10 up 11.1 (b) billion dollars to 99.6 (b) billion.
— economy forecast to shrink by 2.5 per cent this year but rebound to 2.3 per cent growth next year and 3.3 per cent in 2011.
(The Canadian Press)