Pubdate: Tue, 20 Jun 2017
Source: Calgary Herald (CN AB)
Copyright: 2017 Postmedia Network
Contact:  http://www.calgaryherald.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/66
Author: James Wood
Page: A4

CECI SAYS PROVINCE NEEDS TO FIGURE OUT TAXES ON LEGALIZED POT

Alberta will be ready for legalized cannabis in 2018 but has work to
do in developing a tax regime for the product, Finance Minister Joe
Ceci said Monday.

Ceci attended a meeting of federal and provincial finance ministers in
Ottawa where legal weed was on the agenda.

The federal Liberal government has set a date of July 1, 2018, to keep
its campaign promise to legalize recreational marijuana and provinces
are currently working to develop a regulatory regime.

One issue Alberta must grapple with is the lack of a provincial sales
tax, Ceci acknowledged as he spoke to reporters in a televised news
conference.

"Without a provincial sales tax, we need to ensure that we receive
adequate monies to address the costs of having cannabis available for
distribution and sale in our province, whether that's on the health
side or the enforcement side or the education side," he said.

"So, we're going to look at how to make it happen."

As well, some sort of provincial tax is needed on legalized cannabis
to ensure it is not significantly cheaper in Alberta than in other
jurisdictions, said Ceci.

Some provinces, notably Manitoba, have asked Ottawa to push back the
deadline for marijuana legalization to allow provinces more time to
develop their regulatory regime.

Ceci said Alberta is not looking for an extension,
however.

"We are following through with what we need to do to be prepared for
that date," he said. "We're going to be ready."

Alberta's NDP government recently launched consultations around
legalized cannabis, looking at issues such as the legal age for
consumption and where the product should be sold. But the province's
online survey touches only briefly on the issue of taxation, noting
that the province does not expect a major amount of revenue from the
sale of pot.

Federal Finance Minister Bill Morneau said discussions Monday were at
a high level and did not address potential revenue from legalized
cannabis, nor revenuesharing between Ottawa and the provinces.

He said Ottawa is focused on ensuring co-ordination among different
governments across Canada and keeping the rate of taxation of legal
marijuana at a level low enough to end the current black market.

"We have not gotten to conclusions yet. We've seen today as a day to
talk about that principle. I found it to be a very productive
discussion," said Morneau.

Both Morneau and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau rejected the idea of
extending the timeline for legalization.

"We gave everybody lots of time," Trudeau said in Ottawa. "We've been
working for a long time with all the provinces, with the
municipalities.... It's time for us to move forward on this."

Morneau acknowledged after the meeting that several of the provinces
said there's still much work to be done.

For provinces that aren't ready in time for the "fixed date," Ottawa
will oversee a mail-order sales program, Morneau said.

Consumers would be able to buy pot through a federally licensed
producer and receive home delivery.

Provincial ministers have said they intend to push the feds to ensure
they receive a share of pot-related tax revenue that fairly reflects
the added costs provinces will have to assume on the road to
legalization.

Prior to the meeting, Ontario Finance Minister Charles Sousa insisted
he had yet to consider how much pot-related revenue his province could
bring in because he's been more concerned about ensuring legalization
is handled properly.

His Quebec counterpart, Carlos Leitao, said the provinces should
receive most of the tax revenue from legalized pot because they will
"have to shoulder most of the costs of putting in place
regulations."

The federal government has vowed to work with provinces on
implementation and to commit more resources to needs such as public
security, policing and educational campaigns. It has also argued that
marijuana prohibition is very expensive and that legalization could
significantly cut down on costs.
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MAP posted-by: Matt