Richard J. Dalton Jr., with files from Jonathan Fowlie, Vancouver Sun
B.C.'s new harmonized sales tax will blow a $57-million-a-year hole in TransLink's future financial plans, TransLink and the provincial government confirmed Thursday.TransLink had counted on boosting a tax on commercial parking spaces, which now brings in $18 million a year, to raise $57 million annually.But because the parking tax is a sales tax, it is being eliminated and will be rolled into the HST when it is launched next July 1.
TransLink and transportation ministry officials were scrambling to find a way to fix the problem.If the hole isn't fixed by the time TransLink's mayors' council chooses among several financial options later this fall, the transportation authority may have to default to a base plan that requires it to make drastic service cuts.
The news came just as TransLink commissioner Martin Crilly released a report that contained a stern warning for TransLink to live within its means. Crilly said TransLink's preferred financial option, which would require $450 million a year in new revenue, is unrealistic because it hasn't nailed down where the money would come from. (more)
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