Sask. Won’t Remit Carbon Tax to Ottawa, Minister Confirms on Payment Due Date

Dustin Duncan, the minister responsible for SaskEnergy, speaks during a policy announcement at the Legislative Building in Regina on Aug. 22, 2023. The Canadian Press/Michael Bell

Saskatchewan will not remit the federal carbon tax on natural gas to Ottawa, the province’s energy minister announced on the due date of the payment.

The province stopped collecting the tax on natural gas from homeowners Jan. 1, and had until the end of this month to submit the money.

“Today, I’m announcing, in addition to not collecting the carbon tax on SaskEnergy bills, the Government of Saskatchewan will not be remitting the federal carbon tax on natural gas that Saskatchewan families have used to heat their homes,” Minister for Crown Corporations Dustin Duncan said in a Feb. 29 video posted on social media.

Mr. Duncan said that the government did not take the decision lightly.

“We recognize that it may come with consequences,” he said. “This is why in December of last year the Saskatchewan legislature unanimously passed a law that gives our government, and me as Minister, exclusive responsibility for compliance with the federal carbon tax on home heating.”

Mr. Duncan said Saskatchewan households will save approximately $400 by not having to pay the carbon tax on home heating.

“It’s also about fairness in our government refusing to allow [Prime Minister Justin] Trudeau to treat Saskatchewan people like second-class citizens,” he said.

In response to Saskatchewan’s move, the federal Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson said on Feb. 29 that the province’s residents won’t get a carbon tax rebate.

Saskatchewan decided not to collect the carbon tax on home heating bills after the federal government announced a pause on the tax for home heating oil, a move that largely benefits Atlantic Canada. Despite calls from other provinces to pause the tax on other home heating methods, the prime minister said there would be no additional carve-outs.

“There will absolutely not be any other carve-outs or suspensions of the price on pollution,” Mr. Trudeau told reporters Oct. 31. “This is designed to phase out heating oil.”

Mr. Trudeau said he made the decision to pause the tax for three years to allow Canadians time to switch to electric heat pumps.

Mr. Moe announced his province had no plans to collect the carbon tax in an Oct. 30 social media video.

The government introduced legislation in November that would appoint the provincial government the sole registered distributor of natural gas in Saskatchewan. The move protects executives at SaskEngergy from any sanctions the federal government may impose for failure to remit the tax.

The carbon tax was first introduced in 2019 and applies to provinces and territories that do not have their own carbon pricing systems. It currently costs $65 per tonne of emissions and will increase by $15 annually until 2030.

The Canadian Press contributed to this report.