More carbon tax rebates to fill pockets in Mississauga, Brampton, Hamilton and the rest of Ontario

Millions of people across Ontario are set to get a bit more cash in their pockets this month when the Federal government sends out another round of carbon tax rebate cheques.

Officially known as the Climate Action Incentive (CAI), the program imposes a federal price on pollution in provinces that refused to set their own offset program; namely Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario and Saskatchewan.

Ontario was once exempt from the federal tax because of its involvement in a Cap and Trade system with California, Quebec and other provinces and states. This system allowed polluters to buy and trade emissions credits which in turn permitted a certain level of pollution and raised revenue for the governments through pollution allowance auctions.

However, quickly after taking office the new Doug Ford government pulled the province out of the agreement in October 2018. The lack of a carbon tax in Ontario did not last long though. In December of that year, the federal government passed the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act (GHGPPA).

The current price of carbon sits at $50 per tonne of CO2 or an equivalent produced. It is set to rise to $170 by 2030. Canadians have one of the largest average carbon footprints in the world, releasing about 14 tonnes of carbon a year.

In 2022, World Population Review ranked Canada as the 11th largest polluter in the world between Indonesia (10) and Brazil (12). Canada has a much smaller population (ranked 40th) than most comparable polluters, demonstrating a greatly disproportionate impact.

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However, while the average citizen pays the carbon tax throughout the year, that money is returned to them in quarterly installments. In most instances, they will receive more money through CAI payments over the course of the year than they spend.

Previously, the carbon rebates came in a one-time payment on citizen’s income taxes. This year the government switched to three quarterly payments starting in July. That first payment was double what the later ones will be because it came from two quarters.

This time a family of four can expect to receive $93.25 for the first adult, $46.50 for the second adult, and $23.25 for each child. This totals up to $186.25 for the October payment.

In total that family of four in Ontario will get $745 back, more than $150 higher than the average cost-per-household of $578. Additionally, residents in rural communities get an additional 10 per cent back for a total of $819.