Six months ago, when we at the Canadian Federation of Independent Business started receiving dozens of calls from confused and frustrated small business owners, we knew something was wrong.
The big question: why is a government that has championed a strong economy, introducing a costly, confusing new recycling tax? Worse still it is giving the power to tax and regulate to an unelected, unaccountable group called Multi-Material Stewardship Western.
The only good news is that it's not too late to reconsider.
We can all agree reducing packaging and waste is a worthy and noble goal, but the Saskatchewan government has yet to show that its new plan is better than the status quo. We know existing recycling programs aren't perfect and parts of the province needs more help, but surely there are better ways to improve the current system. No other options have been investigated.
The current plan is called the Multi-Material Recycling Program. It will require businesses that sell packaged goods or supply printed paper to Saskatchewan residents to measure it by weight and pay a still-to-be determined fee to MMSW. If it sounds too complicated to be true, it is.
So now MMSW will be asking a small bakery to separate, weigh, record and report any packaging that might go to the consumer waste stream, including cupcake wrappers, cardboard boxes, cake stands, plastic wrap and bags. What about the corner store with packaging from toothpaste tubes to cereal boxes? Thus the dozens of calls.
Back in June 2014, CFIB raised its serious concerns with the premier and new environment minister and recommended they rethink this program and consult with small business owners. The government's decision to consult with small business before proceeding with its plan was smart because basic questions still haven't been answered.
What is the program trying to accomplish and what recycling problem are they trying to fix? Will it be better than our current recycling efforts? What is the demonstrated environmental benefit? What will be the costs? Good policy demands basic questions like these have good answers.
To help the government understand the impact of its current plan, CFIB conducted a survey of its members. Not surprisingly, the majority of Saskatchewan small business owners are recycling and care about the environment, but they have serious concerns with allowing a new arms-length bureaucracy to administer recycling rules. Seventy per cent do not support shifting the responsibility to collect funds for recycling to a new non-profit agency. Ninety per cent believe creating a new level of bureaucracy (MMSW) will unnecessarily increase the cost of recycling and only 17 per cent trust MMSW to be fair in creating rules and fees.
CFIB members also identified some guiding principles that are essential for a recycling program, which include financial transparency, proven environmental benefits, affordability, clear, measurable objectives, government accountability, program review and consultation with small business.
What's most troubling is that the MMRP does not reflect any of these important principles. Clearly the whole thing needs to be rethought. Giving taxing and regulating powers to an unaccountable group isn't consistent with the Saskatchewan government's transparent approach to policy.
So instead of creating a new bureaucracy and adding a bunch of new costs into the system, CFIB is urging the Saskatchewan government to abandon its new approach to recycling and work to help municipalities further improve existing recycling programs. We are also encouraging concerned business owners to call their MLA and ask them two questions: What recycling problem are you trying to fix? Do you support a new costly, confusing new recycling tax?
Marilyn Braun-Pollon is vice-president, Prairie & Agri-business with the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB). She may be reached at [email protected] or you can also follow Marilyn on twitter @cfibsk.
