Peterborough, ON - The Government of Canada has announced that $18 million owed by the former government to school boards in Ontario and Quebec will be paid in full.

For the Peterborough Riding, this means that the Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board will realize a $1,052,958.26 refund from miss-paid taxes.

Budget 2007 proposes to remit the GST paid in respect of student transportation services to certain school authorities that were reassessed pursuant to a measure that was announced in 2001 and enacted in 2003, despite the fact that the Tax Court of Canada had rendered decisions in their favour after the measure was announced. The proposed remission addresses these exceptional circumstances. It continues to be the Government’s policy that the provision of student transportation services by school authorities be treated as an exempt activity under the GST.

“It is important that the school board receives the money that it is entitled to. This problem has existed since 1997 and it is absolutely disheartening to know that valuable funds were being drained away from our education system.” said Dean Del Mastro, Member of Parliament for Peterborough Riding.

From 1997 to 2001 several Ontario and Quebec school boards filed GST reimbursement claims. In December 2001, the previous government passed a law to deny future claims. As a result, several school boards were denied the funds that had previously been approved and they appealed their case.

In April 2003 the Tax Court of Canada rendered its final judgments on the issue, granting the Ontario and Quebec school boards their reimbursement in full. In response, the previous government changed the law to make it retroactive and the school boards were denied once more.

“The government cannot pick and choose which court ruling to obey, and when,” says MP Dean Del Mastro. “When the courts make a ruling and say `pay the money,’ the government has an obligation to comply. Fortunately for all of the schools affected and specifically for the Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board, Canada’s New Government respects the rule of law.”