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1. Help Toronto taxpayers—toll the roads

   Appeared in the Toronto Sun, August 14, 2019 Toronto’s municipally-owned highways are known for heavy congestion. So much so that the Don Valley Parkway is frequently referred to as the Don Valley Parking Lot, costing the region between $6 billion and $11 ...

2. Lessons from the Lone Star State: Comparing the Economic Performance of Alberta and Texas

   This bulletin compares the economic and fiscal performance of the Canadian province of Alberta and the American state of Texas in recent years and provides a brief discussion of how different policy choices may be contributing to the divergent ...

3. After three years of squeezing demand, governments should target housing supply

   Appeared in the Globe and Mail, July 30, 2019 Three years ago this month, the British Columbia government dramatically increased the property transfer tax rate paid by foreign nationals and corporations purchasing residential real estate in Metro ...

4. Alberta’s smaller than anticipated deficit shouldn’t lead to complacency

   Appeared in the Calgary Sun, July 10, 2019 Alberta’s yearend financial report was released at the end of June, and painted a slightly less dim view of provincial finances than previously forecasted. The provincial deficit clocked-in at $6.7 billion, ...

5. Calgary’s overreliance on business tax revenue forces city hall’s hand

   In 2018, Calgary’s non-residential tax rates were almost four times higher than residential rates. ...

6. Alberta should not enable corporate welfare

   Alberta’s United Conservative Party made economic growth a major issue in its recent successful election campaign. Some of its proposed measures—reducing the corporate income tax rate, for example—should help jolt the province’s economy. ...

7. Alberta still keeps federal finances afloat

   Alberta’s major contributions to federal finances during the recent energy boom are well known, though the magnitude may not quite be understood. For example, during the 2014/15 fiscal year, Albertans paid more than $27 billion more in ...

8. Ontario’s Deficit Reduction Strategy Mirrors Previous, Unsuccessful Attempts

   This study analyzes the first budget of the new Progressive Conservative government in Ontario, tabled in early April 2019, to assess the extent to which it reflects either a fundamental shift in fiscal policy from the policies of the Ford government’s ...

9. Edmonton should eliminate minimum parking requirements—other cities should follow suit

   Mandating parking can leave less room for housing. ...

10. Corporate income tax cuts will benefit working Albertans

    Appeared in the Calgary Sun, May 22, 2019 Alberta’s general corporate income tax (CIT) rate is on the move, for the second time in the last four years. Incoming Premier Jason Kenney plans to reduce the CIT by four percentage points over four years, from ...