Under the McGuinty watch , hydro rates have skyrocketed in Ontario. Hydro bills increased by 75% since the introduction time of use (TOU) billing in 2010.
To add insult to injury, the newly introduced HST added 8% to the hydro bills and the government just announced that rates will increase by 46% over the next 5 years. A lot of households are facing outrageous bills.
This increase is a direct result of the incompetence of the McGuinty Liberal government rushing to close two major coal-powered generation plants, no proper planning for replacement capacity, and venturing into unproven green energy projects.
Another joke is the “10% Ontario Energy Benefit” announced by the McGuinty government. This benefit “is calculated on 2011 electricity usage only as 2010 consumption does not qualify for the Ontario Clean Energy Benefit”. A lot of Ontarians do not realize that and it is buried in the fine print.
When they offer relief, it's conditional, miniscule and in the future but when they tax, it is colossal and effective immediately.
Furthermore, McGuinty has the audacity to approve a new surprise tax. A new Smart Meter Tax will be applied to smart meter hydro bills above and beyond the higher costs of ‘time of use pricing’.
Already under Dalton McGuinty, hydro rates have gone up 84 percent and 150 percent for homes with a smart meter, not to mention the $1 billion ($200 per household) price tag that came with installing smart meters.
McGuinty’s Minister of Energy, Brad Duguid quietly approved a request from the Independent Electricity Systems Operator to apply to the Ontario Energy Board for a new tax called Smart Meter Service Fees. This approval is buried in a footnote on page 1-102, of volume 2a of the 2010 Ontario Public Accounts.
The Independent Electricity System Operator’s 2011-2013 Business Plan confirms that the Dalton McGuinty Liberals are already budgeting to collect $33 million per year in Smart Meter Service Fees beginning in 2012 (page 13) . Over the next four years, this would cost Ontario families $132 million to run the smart meters super computer.
Clearly, McGuinty will not stop increasing taxes and fees until he is fired on October 6, 2011. Please deliver his pink slip.
More info on this issue can be found here:
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/toronto/story/2010/04/15/ont-electricity.html
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/ottawa/story/2010/11/02/ottawa-hydro-rates.html
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/ottawa/story/2010/09/07/ottawa-hydro-rate-increase.html
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/toronto/story/2010/11/18/ontario-duncan-economic-update234.html
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/toronto/story/2011/01/26/ont-power-giveaway.html
http://business.financialpost.com/2011/04/28/consumers-will-opt-for-lowest-cost-report
http://h1ripoff.blogspot.com/
http://opinion.financialpost.com/2011/03/11/lawrence-solomon-mcguintys-reality/
http://probeinternational.org/library/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/SM_Cost_Report
http://www.fin.gov.on.ca/en/budget/paccts/2011/11vol2aEng.pdf#page=114
http://www.ieso.ca/imoweb/pubs/corp2/IESO_2011-2013-Business-Plan.pdf#page=15
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