Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - April 3, 2024, Winnipeg, Manitoba B1 WEDNESDAY APRIL 3, 2024 PROVINCIAL BUDGET SECTION B CONNECT WITH WINNIPEG’S NO. 1 NEWS SOURCE ▼ ASSOCIATE EDITOR, NEWS: STACEY THIDRICKSON 204-697-7292 ● CITY.DESK@FREEPRESS.MB.CA ● WINNIPEGFREEPRESS.COM NDP flips script on progressive governance I T is one of the first rules of gov- erning: when a new government is elected, it must never eliminate a tax cut brought in by a predecessor, even if that tax cut was a bad idea and the revenue is needed for more worthy causes. This isn’t applicable just in Manito- ba. Political history has shown repeat- edly that tax cuts are truly the lobster traps of public policy: once you’re in, there is no way to get back out. However, instead of trying to escape the lobster trap, what if you tried to change it to make it more — for lack of a better word — progressive? That is the controversial question that Pre- mier Wab Kinew and Finance Minister Adrien Sala have posed in their first provincial budget. The NDP has taken two of the hall- mark accomplishments of the former Progressive Conservative government — changes to the income tax system and the education property tax rebate — and reimagined them. The Tories introduced two signifi- cant income tax changes in their last year in office: bumps to income brack- ets that are above and beyond normal indexing and an increase in the basic personal amount — the threshold of earned income amount allowed before tax is levied. The NDP is keeping the bracket bumps as the Tories designed them: the first will increase from $36,845 to $47,000, and the second bracket goes from $79,625 to $100,000. However, for the basic personal amount, the NDP is introducing a major change. The government will allow it to rise, as planned by the Tories, but now it will start to be clawed back for anyone making $200,000 in net income. It will be fully clawed back for anyone mak- ing more than $400,000 in net income, which means high-income earners will pay an additional $1,700 in tax. Provincial officials said Manitoba appears to be the first province in Canada to fully claw back the basic personal amount. There are also some fascinating adjustments being introduced to the Tories’ prized property tax rebate program. Instead of giving property owners a cheque for 50 per cent of the total education property tax levy, rebates will be capped at $1,500, regardless of property value. The rationale behind the tweak is an intriguing combination of cynical pol- itics and a slightly more progressive tax strategy. The NDP government has been un- der siege from progressives inside and outside its party for keeping the Tory tax cuts at a time when health care and education are in desperate need of investment. Undeterred, the NDP has stuck to its pledge with the knowledge that keeping the cuts takes a major arrow out of the PC opposition’s quiver. DAN LETT OPINION ● DAN LETT, CONTINUED ON B3 ● MORE REACTION ON B3 Charging ahead on EVs T HE NDP government made good on an election promise Tuesday, as millions of dollars in rebates for new and used electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids was announced as part of the provincial budget. Premier Wab Kinew called the $5.4-million rebate, which will provide $4,000 for new vehi- cles and $2,500 for used cars, “a significant step towards electrifying transportation in Manitoba,” particularly for lower- and middle-income Mani- tobans. No funding has been set aside for electric vehicle charging infrastructure, though Finance Minister Adrien Sala suggested those commitments would come in the future. “Manitoba, it seems to me, is playing catch-up with other jurisdictions that have an (electric vehicle) re- bate,” Molly McCracken, director of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives’ Manitoba office, said after the budget announcement. “A lot of people in the climate community have been concerned about too much emphasis on (electric vehi- cles) because that’s really just swapping out gas cars for electric vehicles, when we know we actually have to also get people on transit.” McCracken said many climate-policy analysts were hoping to see the province recommit to a 50-50 cost-sharing program with municipalities for public transit infrastructure. That funding was cut by the Progressive Conservatives in 2017. Asked about funding for public transit, Kinew tout- ed a $10-million investment in Winnipeg-based elec- tric bus manufacturer New Flyer Industries. The funds will be used to create 400 “low-carbon manu- facturing jobs,” and help establish a national innova- tion centre for heavy equipment vehicles in Winnipeg. “We want to make a showcase here so other juris- dictions can say: ‘That’s how you run a transit system, that’s how you bring zero-emission buses online,’” Kinew said. “That’s how I think we can really punch above our weight in terms of fighting the climate crisis.” The budget also promises to deliver on a campaign commitment to provide ground-source heat pumps to Manitoba families, but stops short of dedicating specific funds to the initiative. McCracken said the CCPA had been pleased by the campaign commitment to geothermal heating, but was disappointed not to see specific numbers in the budget. “We need to rapidly do energy-efficiency upgrades to our commercial and residential buildings (but) there’s really nothing in there about that,” she said. “There’s green talk but not a lot of numbers attached.” The Manitoba government campaigned on a prom- ise to connect 5,000 homes to geothermal heating over four years at a cost of about $32 million annually. That program will be delivered in partnership with the fed- eral government. “Going to ground source geothermal heat pumps to be able to electrify home heating is a really important priority for the homeowners themselves; it also frees up electricity on the grid,” Kinew said. Asked how much money would be dedicated to the program or how many homes the province hoped to connect this fiscal year, Sala said details were still forthcoming. Beyond following through on campaign pledges, Manitoba’s climate and environment funding amounts to approximately $11.5 million in sweeping budget lines geared at funding “initiatives under Manitoba’s plan for climate and sustainability priorities,” includ- ing restoring an unspecified amount of funding to environmental organizations, and a $5-million contri- bution to the bilateral low-carbon economy agreement with the federal government. Trudeau’s parliamentary secretary Terry Duguid praised Kinew for making strides on climate change that aligned with federal priorities. “I appreciate the spirit that I’ve heard from the premier, which is very different than the spirit from other premiers across the country. Premier Kinew is, at least, prepared to work with us to find a way for- ward,” Duguid said. Asked about the premier’s statements regarding the federal backstop carbon price, Duguid, who is mem- ber of Parliament for Winnipeg South, expressed hope the province would soon produce a made-in-Manitoba plan that is acceptable to the federal government and meets the standards that other provinces meet. Much of Manitoba’s climate commitments will be paid out of the long-standing $40-million climate and green fund, which supports the development and im- plementation of various environmental innovation, carbon-reduction and climate-change projects. While the budget promises to increase staffing for parks and the conservation officer service, it makes no mention of the NDP’s campaign promise to work towards protecting 30 per cent of lands and waters by 2030. julia-simone.rutgers@freepress.mb.ca JULIA-SIMONE RUTGERS MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS Molly McCracken, director of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, says a focus on swapping gas-powered cars for EVs ignores the benefits of investing in public transit. Reaction pours in to NDP’s first budget The NDP government received kudos for fulfilling some of its election promises while others pointed out more work still needs to be done. KATIE MAY AND KATRINA CLARKE “I wouldn’t say it’s necessarily business-friendly; I think it’s what we expected from this government. This is what they campaigned on, so they have followed what their campaign promises were going to be: the invest- ments in health care, investments in affordability, we’re seeing a lot of that in the budget.” — Chuck Davidson, president and CEO of the Manitoba Chambers of Commerce “That’s huge. I’ve toured rural Manitoba, Prairie Mountain and those areas, and they’re starving for staff. There’s so much reliance on agencies.” — Kyle Ross, president of the Manitoba Gov- ernment and General Employees’ Union on health-care hirings “Knowing that more (health-care) staff is coming is going to be quite exciting news for folks and I think all Manitobans would agree this is a priority issue.” — Kevin Rebeck, presi- dent of the Manitoba Federation of Labour Rebates up to $4K announced on new and used vehicles MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS FILES ;