List of Miller policies to be reversed

[MetroMan]

Now that we know who's Mayor and that he couldn't be further apart from Miller, which policies you think will be reversed?

We know a couple:

- Car registration tax
- Land transfer tax

What else?

 

[MetroMan]

I'll start...

- 5¢ Plastic Bag fee

 

[syn]

He's already backtracked on the Land Transfer Tax, so that's going to stay, at least for a while.

I think there may be some new "fees" to help deal with the budget shortfall next year. Maybe a new Transit Tax.

 

[GraphicMatt]

He's actually mused openly about keeping the 5 cent bag tax but actually collecting it from retailers and using it to fund environmental initiatives. (I know, I was surprised too.)

I'm going to email his office about this when he takes power. It'd be a nice move.

 

[Eug]

I wish they'd just build the damn bridge to the island already. I will never forgive Miller for that fiasco. I lived in the area and thought my vocal neighbours were completely nuts for wanting to block the bridge.

 

[GenerationW]

The Land Transfer Tax apparently can't be eliminated for at least two years.

Plastic bag tax should stay.

 

[MetroMan]

He's actually mused openly about keeping the 5 cent bag tax but actually collecting it from retailers and using it to fund environmental initiatives. (I know, I was surprised too.)

I'm going to email his office about this when he takes power. It'd be a nice move.

It was already explained why collecting the fee from retailers wasn't done: the administrative cost of collecting, enforcing and distributing the fee far outweighed the money collected.

An idea could be to make an amendment that retailers would have to donate the proceeds themselves to environmental initiatives. Again, I'm not sure how that would enforced and verified.

 

[jn_12]

I wish they'd just build the damn bridge to the island already. I will never forgive Miller for that fiasco. I lived in the area and thought my vocal neighbours were completely nuts for wanting to block the bridge.

If you talk to Porter passengers a lot of them like the ferry. It sucks if you miss it and you're late for your flight (which would be your own fault...), but most people find that it's a calming experience compared to the usual airport hussle. The lack of bridge clearly isn't limiting business anyways.

 

[dt_toronto_geek]

Forget about bike lanes continuing to be rolled out, see a claw-back starting with Jarvis Street by spring despite how well used they are by cyclists. In fact, last week I saw those hoses with monitoring boxes attached (I don't know what they're called) monitoring bike lane traffic around Jarvis & Isabella.

 

[Peepers]

I'll start...

- 5¢ Plastic Bag fee

I agree. This would send an important SYMBOLIC message that would not cost the city anything.

This should be Mayor Fords first order of business.

 

[Eug]

If you talk to Porter passengers a lot of them like the ferry. It sucks if you miss it and you're late for your flight (which would be your own fault...), but most people find that it's a calming experience compared to the usual airport hussle. The lack of bridge clearly isn't limiting business anyways.

Not really. Porter passengers don't hate the ferry, but it's definitely an inconvenience. I, my family members, and my colleagues all take Porter, and the ferry ride just seems totally superfluous... cuz it is.

If given the choice, as far as I can tell, most would prefer a bridge. And yes the lack of a bridge limits business. It adds cost and it adds delay.

It's just plain stupid. It was a complete waste of money to spend money NOT to build a bridge. It's like City Council is going out of its way to limit Toronto's chances of furthering its role as a business hub.

 

[Glen]

It was already explained why collecting the fee from retailers wasn't done: the administrative cost of collecting, enforcing and distributing the fee far outweighed the money collected.

An idea could be to make an amendment that retailers would have to donate the proceeds themselves to environmental initiatives. Again, I'm not sure how that would enforced and verified.

It cannot be done because it would be an indirect tax, ultra vires to the city.

 

[nfitz]

I expect that we'll see an end of the Miller policy of trying to rebalance property taxation so that commercial taxpayers are paying a smaller share, with residential taxpayers paying an bigger share.

With the huge revenue cuts Ford is proposing, it's really going to strain the budget, forcing a lot of pressure onto property taxes.

 

[Mr.Tang]

^ I think that would be a very poor policy move and not in keeping with the 'open for business' slogan - but populism is populism.

How quickly will we see the trend of insourcing services to the city (ie. janitorial services on the TTC) outsourced to a more competitive bidding/private company structure? That would be a much more effective way to ease budget strain (IMO).

 

[lafard]

Even if they officially repeal the bag tax, it probably isn't going anywhere, it's basically free money for the stores and most of them have figured out how to work with the nickel-per-bag policy efficiently by now, they're no longer paying someone to stand beside the automated checkouts and sell the bags for a nickel. I doubt it's enforced either, a lot of the mom-and-pops don't seem to bother charging for bags.