GOVERNMENT POLICY UPDATE This latest feature of the newsletter will be published monthly. The update serves as a recap and reference point for our members regarding the latest policy impacts on the energy market. We will continue to monitor and communicate any policy changes directly to members as they happen. The updates below are for the period beginning March 1 and ending March 31, 2021.
WHAT'S NEW?
FEDERALLY
• Environment Minister Jonathan Wilkinson issued an immediate statement lauding the decision as “a win for the millions of Canadians who believe we must build a prosperous economy that fights climate change.” Clean Fuel Standard Regulation: comment period now closed • Comments in response to the government’s updated Clean Fuel Standard Regulation published on December 19, 2020, in the Canada Gazette, Part I were due to Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) Thursday, March 4, 2021. • This marks the end of the 75-day consultation period. ECCC is targeting late 2021 to publish final regulations. Canada’s carbon price is set to increase April 1, 2021
The Supreme Court of Canada rules carbon tax is constitutional • •
The Supreme Court of Canada has ruled in favour of the federal government’s carbon pricing regime due to the “serious threat climate change poses to the world.” Alberta, Ontario, and Saskatchewan have been opposed to the carbon tax, arguing that natural resources are provincial jurisdiction.
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Part of the federal government’s broader plan to raise the price by $10 per tonne each year, capped at $50 per tonne in 2022, the next increase is set for April 1. The current price of $30 per tonne of industrial greenhouse gas emissions will be raised to $40 per tonne, which translates to an extra 8.8 cents per litre of gasoline for regular consumers, according to the Canada Revenue Agency.
Canadian Independent Petroleum Marketers Association | Connection 2021 |
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