The New Brunswick legislature in Fredericton. (Image: Brad Perry)
The New Brunswick government says it will not be renewing tax-sharing agreements with First Nation communities.
Premier Blaine Higgs made the announcement Tuesday, calling the existing agreements “unsustainable and unfair.”
The agreements allow First Nation communities to keep a percentage of the provincial tax revenues they collect on-reserve through the sale of tobacco, gasoline and other fuels.
Currently, the communities keep 95 per cent of the first $8 million in provincial tax revenues and 70 per cent on amounts above that.
Higgs said about $44 million will be refunded to First Nations this year and that number is projected to reach $75 million in 2031-32.
Posted: Apr 13, 2021 11:43 AM AT | Last Updated: April 13
Premier Blaine Higgs has called on First Nations chiefs to negotiate a modern and sustainable economic partnership. (Submitted by the Government of New Brunswick)
The New Brunswick government is pulling out of tax-sharing agreements with 13 Mi kmaq and Wolastoqey First Nations, invoking its right to terminate some of the deals as early as this July.
Those agreements, which date back to 1994 and were last renewed in 2017, have fuelled economic growth in some Indigenous communities, particularly those that have built large gas retailers on reserve land.
The deals allow the First Nations to keep 95 per cent of on-reserve gas tax revenue up to $8 million and 70 per cent of amounts beyond that.
Court rules in favour of New Brunswick First Nations in dispute on carbon tax revenue theglobeandmail.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from theglobeandmail.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.