Finance Minister – Sales tax not the answer to Alberta’s fiscal woes
EDMONTON – Alberta Finance Minister Joe Ceci says he is not considering introducing a sales tax to help cure the province’s financial woes because Albertans don’t support it.
Ceci says the idea of a sales tax came up today when he had a roundtable meeting with economists but says having no provincial sales tax reflects, in his words, “the mindset of Albertans.”
Ceci says the province will continue to try to reduce spending and grow the economy with an eye to balancing the budget by 2023.
Alberta is on track for a $10.3-billion deficit this year and more than $42 billion in debt by next spring.