BC’s new Employer Health Tax

One of the big changes revealed in the BC budget speech a few weeks ago was the announcement of a new progressive tax that will replace MSP premiums in our province. The BC Employers Health Tax, as it will be called, is slated to come into effect in January 2019.

We know there are already many questions about how this tax will impact the community sector and The Federation is working hard to find answers to those questions. We have also reached out to a number of our colleagues in other umbrella organizations so that we can work collaboratively on this issue—if advocacy is required, we will be in a stronger position to do so if we can coordinate across sectors and ministries. We have also reached out to our partners in the government and let them know that The Federation is keen and ready to be involved when the planning begins.

As soon as we have more information, we will share it with our members. In the meantime, our approach to this issue will likely require some information from members over the coming months. Kathy Powelson will be leading this work. Please contact her if you have any questions or are willing to share information to bolster our position.