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The Canadian Taxpayer Federation (CTF) wants the provincial gas tax to be reduced, according to its annual Gas Tax Honesty Report.
When motorists fill up in Saskatchewan, they are paying three different taxes.
“There’s the provincial gas tax — that’s the biggest one, it’s 15 cents a litre — then there’s the federal gas tax, that’s 10 cents a litre, and then on top of that there’s the GST about 6.3 cents a litre,” said Gage Haubrich, prairie director for the CTF.
He said that adds up to 24 per cent of the total gas bill and estimates it will cost $23 in gas taxes for a family filling up to go on a road trip in a minivan.
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He wants to see Saskatchewan become more competitive with its neighbouring provinces when it comes to gas prices.
“We’re focussing here on calling the provincial government to cut the gas tax to eleven and a half cents a litre,” he said. “That would put it one cent under Manitoba, and give Saskatchewan the lowest gas tax in western Canada.”
Gage Haubrich, prairie director for the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, with the gas taxes in 2024. (Kaleb Sebastian/980 CJME files)
Recently Manitoba made a permanent one and a half per cent cut and Haubrich said it’s time Saskatchewan follows suit.
“We’ve seen other provinces make cuts to their gas taxes in recent times,” he said.
“Gas is something that’s a necessity for most families when you’re driving across (the province), to get to work (or) to get to wherever you need to go — you’re going to have to buy fuel.”
Haubrich estimates that dropping the provincial gas tax would save taxpayers $120 million a year.
“That’s only about half a per cent of total government revenue,” he said.
“Something the government can afford to do to give Saskatchewan just that little bit of an extra break at the pump.”
Haubrich said the CTF is in constant communication with the federal government about gas tax.
“The government has talked about making life more affordable for Canadians.”
Haubrich hopes the report makes people more aware of what they are paying for when they fill up their vehicles.
“We think it’s really important to highlight all the taxes that people pay at the pump,” he said. “It’s not itemized (on) all these receipts, all you’re seeing is the GST on there.”
Haubrich said he believes people will be upset once they learn about the hidden taxes.
“When you’re not seeing those itemized things on your gas bill every time, that seems a little bit sneaky,” he said.
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