Toronto, November 14, 2022 – On behalf of our 38,000 small- and medium-sized business members across all sectors, we are encouraged by several measures included in today’s Fall Economic Statement. The government’s commitment to automatically match small business subclass property tax reductions implemented by municipalities is particularly welcomed. In a CFIB September survey, 69% of small businesses agreed that their municipality should adopt a small business property subclass.
The Ontario government’s move to mirror the federal government’s improved access to the small business deduction is a positive step on the road to small business recovery and growth.
Since fuel/energy costs are the top cost constraint for small businesses, we applaud the provincial government for extending its gas and fuel tax reductions for another year.
Many small businesses are still struggling. Well over half (59%) are still making less than their normal revenues. A troubling 42% have not yet been able to pay back a penny of their average COVID-related debt of nearly $130,000.
Heading into pre-budget season, we will continue to urge the Ontario government to maintain a ‘do no harm’ approach and not introduce any new costs on small businesses. We will also keep asking the provincial government to implement measures such as increasing the exemption thresholds for the Small Business Tax Rate and Employer Health Tax and indexing them to inflation annually. Actions like these would go a long way towards moving the needle on recovery and setting up small businesses for success.
–Ryan Mallough, Vice President, Legislative Affairs (Ontario)
–Julie Kwiecinski, Director of Provincial Affairs (Ontario)
–Riley Locke, Policy Analyst (Ontario)
For media inquiries or interviews, please contact:
Dariya Baiguzhiyeva, CFIB
647-464-2814
public.affairs@cfib.ca
About CFIB
The Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) is Canada’s largest association of small- and medium-sized businesses with 95,000 members across every industry and region, including 38,000 in Ontario. CFIB is dedicated to increasing business owners’ chances of success by driving policy change at all levels of government, providing expert advice and tools, and negotiating exclusive savings. Learn more at cfib.ca.