Bicycle Tax
Gordon Hobbis November 15, 2007

The Toronto Maple Leafs and Vancouver Canucks are both .500 hockey teams. Now the Ontario Government is trying to be equal with British Columbia on the bicycle tax issue as well. On November 9th, Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty announced that starting on December 1, bikes and safety equipment will be exempt from retail sales tax. BC has had a retail tax exemption on bicycles since 1980. The context of the Ontario exemption is to encourage Ontarians to stay healthy and be active in their daily lives. As the Premier put it in his announcement, “We want to encourage more Ontarians—young and young-at-heart—to get outdoors, spend time riding bikes as a family and with friends, or to try riding to work if possible, leaving the car at home. “Together, we're building a culture of health and well-being across Ontario by encouraging more families to embrace active living."

The Bicycle Trade Association of Canada applauds this announcement as do all the bicycle shops in Ontario. Pete Lilly, the owner of Sweet Pete’s Bike Shop was quoted as saying that “Increasing the affordability of quality bikes for children, youth and those considering cycle commuting sets the stage for a lifetime of cycling.” I spoke with Eric Kamphof who used to work with me at Cap’s a few years ago. He now works at Curbside Cycle on Bloor Street in Toronto and welcomes the announcement. Eric told me that “Curbside has always been promoting cycling as transportation and we regularly teach new commuters how to ride in a suit. This tax break will really help our customers and our business. I hope this initiative lasts and even gets expanded to what you have in BC.” The retail sales tax on bicycles in Ontario was at a pretty substantial amount too, 8%.

When BC put through a tax exemption for bicycles, there were other tax incentives for energy efficient items. I suppose the situation of 27 years ago is similar to the world we live in today. Bicycles, safety items and bicycle parts are still tax exempt in BC, unfortunately for Ontaritonians the current exemption is only scheduled to last for one year, the good times end November 30, 2008. The exemption is only for bicycles that sell below the $1000 price level and safety equipment such as helmets, lights, bells and mirrors. Bicycle parts and accessories are still taxable in Ontario. This exemption is much more limited that what we enjoy in BC where all bikes, parts and accessories installed at the time of bicycle purchase are exempt.

Other announcements from the McGuinty government to encourage Ontaritonians to be healthy include:  requiring 20 minutes of daily physical activity and banning the sale of junk food in schools; giving every Ontarian the right to be free from second-hand smoke with the Smoke-Free Ontario Act which bans smoking in public spaces and workplaces; Protecting the Greenbelt, 1.8 million acres of greenspace; Creating the Ontario Trails Strategy to develop a world-class system of diversified recreational trails and a retail sales tax exemption for nicotine replacement therapies. A proposal to improve mental health by banning all Toronto Maple Leaf games was defeated by a narrow margin of hockey sadists. Once you are finished calling everyone you know in Ontario and bragging about how much better it is here for cyclists then take advantage of the tax break yourself and get the winter bicycle stuff you need. Tires with more grip for the rain, no PST. Lights and reflectors for safe riding at dusk and dawn, no PST. Fenders to keep the splashing down, no PST. If you are really interested in going green with cycling, there was a story in the LA Times recently that highlighted different outdoor equipment for being ‘green’. Amongst the surfboards, skateboards and snowboards was the bamboo bike made by a company in La Selva Beach California. They have produced 100 of the bamboo bike frames and they are being praised for the quality of the ride. Craig Calfee, the owner calls bamboo “tougher than carbon fiber in terms of impact resistance.  If there were an award for "Bicycle with lowest carbon footprint" (least amount of carbon dioxide emissions in the production of the frame), this frame would win, hands down.” It also comes with a ten year warranty. Just stay away from Panda Bears and fire pits. A bamboo frame will set you back about $2600, in BC that would be PST exempt but not in Ontario.   Who knew that you could save so much tax by keeping those pedals turning?