CFIB speaks out against "Eco Fees"
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Letter to the Environment Minister
The general public only recently experienced what small business owners have endured for years - the uneven and heavy-handed approach of Stewardship Ontario. In fact, CFIB strongly opposed the government's decision in 2003 to hand over taxing authority to this unelected body. It was for many of the reasons that eventually forced the government to eliminate the eco fees - lack of transparency and accountability - that CFIB opposed that critical decision.
While CFIB welcomes the government's decision to initiate a 90-day review to develop a new system to protect the environment from hazardous materials, we are calling on Queen's Park to go even further and review the the actions of Stewardship Ontario during this unfortunate chain of events.
Moreover, we hope that whatever the new system, that the public be given the straight goods on what it will cost them. Rather than forcing businesses to bury the cost of any future program, we believe that consumers have the right to know what it will directly or indirectly cost them. After all, the fact that consumers were able to see the true cost of the current system (eco fees) is what led them to demand better from their elected leaders!
