B.C. vows to recover $2M in misdirected climate dividends
$100 cheques mistakenly sent to former B.C. residents
Last Updated: Friday, September 12, 2008 | 2:54 PM PT
CBC News
Two-million dolllars worth of climate dividend cheques sent to people who were not eligible for them will be recovered, B.C. Finance Minister Colin Hansen said Friday.
The $100 cheques, which were meant to offset the impact of the province's new carbon tax, were only supposed to be sent to residents currently living in B.C., but Hansen said roughly 20,000 were mistakenly mailed out to former British Columbians now living in other parts of the country.
Since June, Canada Revenue Services Agency has sent out 3.8 million of the $100 cheques on behalf of the B.C. government. Hansen said the CRA will now be responsible for recovering those cheques.
Hansen also made it clear B.C. taxpayers will not have to pay for the $2-million in mistakenly delivered cheques.
Letters have been sent to the affected recipients asking them to return the dividend, and Hansen said anyone who does not may have the money automatically deducted from their next tax return.
But the NDP says the province should still bear some of the responsibility for the error.
"Part of the problem with this program is it was one of the premier's pet projects and [was] probably hastily put together," said NDP finance critic Bruce Ralston.
The provincially issued cheques were meant to encourage British Columbians to buy something good for the environment and to counter some of the negative financial consequences of the carbon tax, which came into effect July 1.
B.C.'s carbon tax puts a levy on carbon-based fuels including gasoline, diesel, natural gas and heating fuel. The tax is based on a rate of $10 per tonne of greenhouse gas released during the burning of those fuels.
