Feds willing to give more pot tax revenue to provinces to help municipalities
OTTAWA — The Trudeau government is willing to give provinces and territories a bigger share of the revenue from a federal excise tax on cannabis, provided that the extra money is devoted to helping municipalities cope with the impact of legalizing recreational pot.
The feds have proposed giving provincial and territorial governments half of the estimated $1-billion annual excise tax take once weed becomes legal next July.
But The Canadian Press has learned that Finance Minister Bill Morneau and his officials have signalled a willingness to increase that share during discussions with their provincial and territorial counterparts.
The discussions have been taking place in preparation for a meeting of federal, provincial and territorial finance ministers Dec. 10-11, where the issue of cannabis taxation is expected to be front and centre.