Fair Taxation in a Changing World

The Ontario Fair Tax Commission has challenged the trend in tax reform by focusing on fairness instead of exclusively on changes necessary to promote economic efficiency. In the first general inquiry into taxation in 25 years, the 10-member commission has made recommendations that represent fundamental change in the structure of the province’s tax system. Taken together, the recommendations call for a strong endorsement of a more progressive tax system. In rethinking the tax mix, the commission came to the conclusion that changes should be made to improve the relationship between taxes and the ability to pay, and to make the overall system more progressive. Recommendations are made concerning all the major sources of provincial revenue, including a major overhaul of the property tax. The commission also discusses the potential role for wealth taxes and environmental taxes in a reformed Ontario tax system. However, the limits both Ontario and Canada face in the taxation of sources of income that are mobile, such as capital, are real and cannot be ignored. As a result, the commission has taken into consideration the constraints faced by Ontario as a subnational jurisdiction in an open economy currently undergoing significant structural change.