REGINA — The Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan has unanimously passed The SaskEnergy (Carbon Tax Fairness for Families) Amendment Act.
The bill amends The SaskEnergy Act to designate the Crown as the sole registered distributor of natural gas in Saskatchewan, and invests all powers, rights, authorities, responsibilities and obligations for the purposes of Part 1 of the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act (Canada), to the Government of Saskatchewan. These authorities include providing the minister with the sole decision-making authority concerning payment of any charge, tax, levy, remittance or other payment required by Part 1 of the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act (Canada).
Under this legislation, the Crown will indemnify SaskEnergy and all current and former directors, officers, employees, agents, members, affiliates and other representatives from all damages, costs, charges and expenses, including legal fees, that the corporation or individual incurs concerning any civil, criminal, administrative, investigative or other matter in which the corporation or individual is implicated in relation to the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act (Canada).
On Oct. 30, Premier Scott Moe announced that SaskEnergy will stop collecting the carbon tax on Jan. 1, 2024, in response to the federal government's decision to stop charging the carbon tax on home heating oil, which primarily benefits families in Atlantic Canada. Moe said the federal government should extend the exemption to all forms of home heating, but if they refused to do that, the province would stop collecting the carbon tax on SaskEnergy bills.
The removal of the federal carbon tax from SaskEnergy bills, effective will save the average Saskatchewan family approximately $400 in 2024, according to the government. The bill will receive Royal Assent Dec. 7.
