OTA chief delivers trucking message to Queen’s Park

TORONTO, (Feb. 10, 2004) — Ontario Trucking Association President David Bradley delivered his pro-trucking message to the Ontario Liberal government today — stressing border solutions and tax harmonization for the trucking industry.

David Bradley and Chairman George Ledson addressed the Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs at Queen’s Park, in the hopes the government will consider trucking issues when it unveils its first budget.

The OTA’s presentation highlighted the findings of the Institute for International Business (IIB) at the University of Toronto, which found that on capital, Ontario based trucking firms are at a 31 per cent tax disadvantage compared to U.S. competitors in Michigan, Ohio, and New York. The study, commissioned by the OTA, further showed that an introduction of a harmonization of the PST with the GST would reduce the capital tax burden on Ontario carriers by per cent.

“The trucking industry in the last few years has suffered attacks on its competitiveness from areas beyond its control — fuel, the new U.S. border security requirements, valuation change in the Canadian dollar and insurance rates,” said Bradley. “The low Canadian dollar, which once masked Ontario’s uncompetitive tax structure, is no longer available to the Ontario trucking industry. A harmonization of the PST with the GST would help improve Ontario’s businesses community ability to compete in this new business climate.”

OTA’s submission provides the Government of Ontario with global examples of how jurisdictions introduced a harmonized sales tax system that was good for the business community and sensitive to the various levels of family income.