The authors examine some of the key features of the US Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) and discuss the implications for Canadian corporations and government revenues. They show that the tax advantage that Canada enjoyed prior to the TCJA has declined significantly, in terms of both statutory and...

Ontario's new Harmonized Sales Tax applies to a broader base of consumer purchases than before, but it also removes some of the “hidden” taxes on business inputs. This paper offers a first look at how the change has affected consumer prices and the welfare of Ontario families. While consumer...

A decade ago, several Canadian provinces replaced retail sales taxes by value-added taxes. This paper estimates the effects of this tax substitution on consumer prices in the reforming provinces. Consistent with theory, we find that the resulting effective tax rate changes were shifted forward...

The federal government is reducing its GST rate from 7% to 5%. We examine a broader reform in which this reduction in federal tax rates and revenues is accompanied by a similar reduction in federal transfers to the provinces. At the same time, the provinces may if they wish increase their own...