Ontario HST

As part of its 2009 provincial budget, the Ontario government tabled a bill on November 16, 2009 to introduce a harmonized sales tax (HST) in Ontario.

The harmonized sales tax being proposed by Ontario will combine the eight percent provincial sales tax with the five percent federal goods and services tax (GST) to create a single 13 percent harmonized sales tax (HST) administered by the federal government. The Ontario HST is scheduled to take effect July 1, 2010.

The Ontario government says Ontario's current dual tax system puts Ontario businesses at a competitive disadvantage and implementation of a single sales tax would bring the province into line with the most efficient form of sales taxation around the world. They say the tax reform being proposed, including the HST, will create jobs and position the Ontario economy for future growth as the province emerges from the economic downturn. They also claim the single sales tax will reduce paperwork costs for business by more than $500 million a year.

The 2009 Ontario budget will provide $10.6 billion over three years in personal income tax relief to help consumers through the transition to the single sales tax. This includes personal Ontario income tax cuts and direct payments or rebates. It will also provide $4.5 billion in business tax relief over three years, including reducing the corporate income tax rate to 10 percent over three years, cutting the small business tax rate and exempting more small and medium-sized businesses from corporate minimum tax.

For the most part consumers will not notice a large change in prices. However, there are many items currently exempt from the provincial sales tax that will no longer be exempt. They include: gasolineheating fuelselectricitytobaccopersonal services, such as haircuts, membership fees for clubs and gyms, magazines, taxi fares, professional services for lawyers, architects and accountants, and real estate commissions.

The HST will not be charged on: basic groceriesprescription drugssome medical devicesmunicipal public transithealth and education serviceslegal aidmost financial serviceschild caretutoringmusic lessonsresidential rentscondo fees

Currently the PST is not applied to those items.

There will still be a few exemptions from the provincial portion of the sales tax: children's clothing and footweardiaperschildren's car seats and car booster seatsfeminine hygiene productsbooks (including audio books)prepared food and beverages sold for $4.00 or lessprint newspapers

No HST will be charged on residential rentscondo feespurchase of resale homes

The HST will be applied on the purchase of new homes. However, homebuyers will be able to claim a rebate of some of the provincial portion of the tax for new homes priced up to $500,000. The rebate for new primary residences under $400,000 will be six percent of the purchase price (or 75 percent of the provincial portion of the tax), with the rebate amount reduced for homes priced between $400,000 and $500,000.

Buyers of new residential rental properties will receive a similar rebate.

The HST will apply on real estate commissions.

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Ontario MPPs

There are 107 seats in the Ontario Legislative Assembly. Members elected to the Ontario Legislative Assembly are called MPPs. Ontario MPPs
Current members of the Ontario Legislative Assembly. Includes photo, contact information and parliamentary history for each. From the Ontario Legislative Assembly.

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ID for Ontario Elections

When you go to vote at a polling station in an Ontario provincial election, remember to bring identification with you.

You are required to prove your identity and residential address.

If you are already on the voters list, or if you have a Certificate to Vote, you will need to prove your identity to get a ballot. You must show a document or card with your name and it must match your name on the voters list.

Examples of acceptable proof of identity are: Ontario Driver's LicenceOntario Health CardCanadian PassportCertificate of Indian StatusCredit CardHospital Card

If you are on the voters list, your Notice of Registration Card will serve as proof of your residence. If you have misplaced your Notice of Registration Card, then bring a card or document that shows both your name and address (see list below).

If you are not already on the voters list, you can get on it by applying when you get to the polling station if you can show one piece of identification with both your name and residential address.

Examples of documents that show both proof of identity and proof of residence are: Ontario Driver's LicenceOntario Motor Vehicle PermitCancelled Personalized ChequeProperty Tax AssessmentCredit Card StatementBank Account StatementPhone Bill

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Ford plant closure mourned by St. Thomas, Ontario

Ford plant worker Dennis McGee thought he had "died and gone to heaven" when he collected his first paycheque of $325 in 1978, but now McGee and hundreds of other employees are bidding farewell to the employer that has been the economic backbone of the southwestern Ontario community of St. Thomas for 44 years.

The last sedan rolls off the assembly line Thursday, throwing McGee and the last of the about 1,100 employees out of work at the factory that had 3,600 workers a decade ago. The closure was announced in 2009, as the North American auto industry was taking a battering, but hope prevailed that it would be avoided as auto bailout packages in the midst of the recent recession helped revive North American automakers.

McGee, for one, still has dependents, and is grappling with the forced retirement as the final sedan rolls out of the 2.6-million-square-foot factory where the Lincoln Town Car, Crown Victoria other vehicles have been built.

"My first paycheque I had rent money — $195 plus I had about $130 left over —and I thought I'd died and gone to heaven," he says. "I still got kids in university and I gotta figure out how I'm gonna pay for that.

"It's tough, it's emotional, there's a sense of numbness," McGee adds. "I met a lot of good people over the years and to see it shutting down, breaks my heart, it really does."

Heather Jackson Chapman, mayor of the community of about 35,000, says the plant isn't the only business casualty in the community, which is in for some tough times.

More than 3,000 manufacturing jobs have disappeared in the past three years, and St. Thomas now has one of the highest unemployment rates in the country.

"We're never going to see the big plants again that employ 2,000 at a time with the high-paying jobs we became accustomed to — it's just the new reality."

To help the Ford workers, the union and the automaker have worked out compensation packages that allow for early retirements and a limited number of transfers to other Ford factories.

The about 800 remaining employees who need to find new work get a severance package as well as three years of job-search and retraining assistance through a centre set up by the Canadian Auto Workers union. A Ford spokesman says the company remains committed to Ontario, having recently invested in its engine plant in Windsor and its assembly plant in Oakville.

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Ontario Voters Lists

A permanent voters list, called the Permanent Register of Electors, is maintained for Ontario provincial elections.

Information for the Permanent Register of Electors is collected in a variety of ways: an individual may apply to have his or her name added or removed information may be obtained from reliable sources, including Elections Canada, departments of the Canadian federal government, the Ontario provincial government, agencies of both federal and provincial governments, and Ontario municipalities an enumeration may be conducted

Most qualified voters in Ontario are already listed on the Ontario Permanent Register of Electors. If you have moved recently, have turned 18 since the last election, or are a new Canadian citizen you may not be listed on the register.

To confirm that your name is on the Ontario Permanent Register of Electors you can fill in the form to check online or you can call Elections Ontario at 1-888-668-8683.

After an Ontario provincial election is called, a Notice of Registration card is mailed to registered voters with information on where and when to vote. If you do not receive a Notice or Registration Card, you may not be on the Permanent Register of Electors.

You can add your name to the Permanent Register of Electors by showing proof of identity and residence at your electoral district returning office or at any advance poll location. You will receive a Certificate to Vote which can be exchanged for a ballot at the advance poll or at your regular poll location on election day.

If your name is not on the voters list, you can have your name added when you go to your polling place to vote on election day. You will need to make a statutory declaration as to your identity and eligibility to vote. You will also be required to complete an application form and provide proof of identity and residence.

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Ontario Elections

Ontario now has set dates for provincial general elections. The next Ontario provincial election is scheduled for Thursday, October 6, 2011.

On October 10, 2007, at the same time as the 2007 Ontario general election, a referendum was held to ask Ontario voters which type of electoral system should be used in the future to elect members to the Ontario Legislative Assembly. Ontario voters rejected the proposed electoral reform.

Not sure about the meaning of a term or phrase used in Canadian elections? Look it up here.

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