Ontario's eco-fees may be unconstitutional

Did you watch the price of goods go up on July 1st? HST wasn't the only culprit. New "eco-fees" were slapped on a wide variety goods that the government thinks are environmentally harmful. This includes everything from potting soil to washing up liquid. Stewardship Ontario, an independent body set up by the Ontario Government, has levied these fees. The problem is, it can't.

Legal experts say the eco-fees are unconstitutional since they are legally considered to be a tax. The problem is only the legislature can levy taxes and only the ministry of revenue can collect them. It grows out of that whole "no taxation without representation" that got the Americans so hot and bothered 230 years ago.

Direct taxation is when the government passes a law in the legislature and announces it to the public. That's allowed by the constitution. Indirect taxation is when the government sets up an external body to levy and collect fees without informing or consulting citizens. That's what Stewardship Ontario has done. They are collecting fees for the government through businesses, who then pass the costs on to consumers. There was no vote on these fees. No hearings were ever held. No legislation was tabled. The body unilaterally decided to implement them.

The fees have been in place since 2007 when they were first levied on items such as paint. Nobody complained mainly because nobody knew they were there. At the time, only a handful of items were covered. The list has since ballooned.

Environment Minister John Gerretsen seems to think this is A-OK. After all, the McGuinty government thinks the lack of action by the public is a wholehearted endorsement of their policies. Dalton's dream team knows how to play the apathy of Ontarians like a well used Xbox.

Despite the lack of complaints, it still doesn't make the fees legal. Yet another sign that our governments have total contempt for the people they serve.