Category: Taxation & Spending

POLICY BRIEF: The last government employee pay cut

This policy brief examines when the last time was that governments in Canada reduced employee pay. We asked the federal government, provincial governments, and 13 major cities for information on their last employee pay reductions.

SUN NEWS COLUMN: How city halls might end up delaying economic recovery

Coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic, it will be important to pay attention to city hall and how it responds to the recession – municipalities are uniquely positioned to hurt or help our nation’s economic recovery. Taxpayers should also be aware that despite what some city councillors and mayors insist, cities have more financial flexibility than they let on.

A look at Winnipeg’s city council pension

A little while ago, I did a bit of research into Winnipeg’s City Council pension plan and thought I would post the findings in case anyone would like to take a closer look.

Report: Double Pensions in Big Cities

New Canadian think tank SecondStreet.org released today a report that examines large cities in Canada and the double pensions they provide to some municipal employees.

POLICY BRIEF: Double and Triple Municipal Pensions

SecondStreet.org examined double and triple pension situations in 11 major cities across Canada, filing freedom of information requests with Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, Saskatoon, Winnipeg, Toronto, Ottawa, Brampton, Mississauga, Montreal and Halifax.

Carbon tax poll (part 2)

This policy brief examines Canadians’ feelings about carbon taxes generally, as well as their personal willingness to pay.