Dear Editor:
I read with interest your April 4 editorial April Fools regarding new cost increases to the average citizen.
One that was missing, while not a "tax increase" as such, has exactly the same effect. For our 2013 income taxes, the provincial government has quietly reduced the basic personal exemption almost 10 per cent, from $11,354 for 2012 to $10,276 for 2013. These basic personal exemptions typically increase slightly each year, with inflation (the federal government's basic personal exemption increased from $10,822 to $11,038 (+1.4 per cent). These changes would probably not be noticed by users of tax preparation software.
With a B.C. tax credit rate of 5.06 per cent, this $1,078 reduction in basic personal exemption takes more than $54 from the wallet of each and every one of us. What a sneaky way to effect a tax increase for, as you say, "a government that prides itself on balancing the budget without adding taxes."
Norm Watt
North Vancouver
