Carbon Tax British Columbia

About Carbon Tax British Columbia

British Columbia introduced the first revenue neutral carbon tax in North America in 2008. The tax started at 10 per ton of CO2 and increased to 30 by 2012. Revenue neutrality was achieved by reducing personal and corporate income taxes. The carbon tax reduced per capita emissions by approximately 12 percent in its first six years. The BC economy grew faster than the rest of Canada during this period, refuting arguments that carbon taxes would harm the economy. In 2017, the BC government ended revenue neutrality and increased the carbon tax to align with federal requirements. The BC carbon tax has been studied internationally as a model for carbon pricing. The federal Canadian carbon tax, implemented in 2019, faced significant political opposition, particularly from conservative provinces.