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A Port Coquitlam woman is being asked to jump through hurdles to get her $100 tax rebate -- but her dead mother had no such problems.
"It absolutely infuriates me, especially since [the government] is making out that everybody will be automatically getting it," said Kat Derksen, 53. "It's not true."
Derksen, a homemaker who earns no income, is listed as a dependant spouse on her husband's tax return.
He got his $100 refund.
Her mom, who died in May, got a cheque, correctly addressed to her estate.
When Derksen inquired, she was told she didn't got a cheque because being a dependant spouse doesn't count.
"I resent that," she said. "I believe as a dependent spouse, I'm being treated differently than other people."
Refusing to file a separate income tax return on principle, a frustrated Derksen was sent to a website to download an application form for the $100 rebate.
After navigating through the site, all she got was a blank page.
"I know how to access information, but what about immigrant families?" she said. "Or people who have limited access to English? It's a complicated procedure."
About 3.1 million of the $100 Climate Action Dividends have been sent out to adults and children who were B.C. residents on Dec. 31, 2007. They are meant to help offset the new provincial carbon tax, which came into effect on Tuesday.
A spokesman for the Ministry of Finance said dependant spouses aren't officially recognized, but that they are eligible for the refund, despite the advice Derksen received.
Deceased people, too, are entitled, so long as they met the residency requirement and filed a tax return.
Cheques are also being sent out to people who are flat-out ineligible, like Walker Harrison.
"I was quite surprised, seeing as how I've been living in Alberta for the last two years," said the 43-year-old courier driver, who moved to Edmonton on July 1, 2006.
Not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, Harrison cashed the cheque.
"Any money back to any Canadian citizen from the government is deserving, so I think I was deserving -- but not for the reasons it was sent," he said.
NDP house leader Mike Farnworth said mistakes like Harrison's case add to the cost of a program that's already "straight gouging."
"The government is spending millions of taxpayers' money on expensive advertising and there's people who are entitled to the cheques that aren't getting them or have to jump through bureaucratic hurdles," he said.
Maureen Bader, B.C. head of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, said that despite the government's claims, the tax is unlikely to be revenue-neutral.
"The full notion of sending out our own money and charging us to do it is just a bribe to keep people quiet about the carbon tax," she said. "This could end up costing people in B.C. quite a lot of money."
The government has budgeted $10 million to administer the program, which uses data collected by the Canada Revenue Agency.
In case of errors, there is an investigation process, said the ministry.
As for Harrison, when asked whether he spent the $100 towards saving the environment, he said: "Oh gosh, no, not here in Alberta. We're not worried about carbon emissions over here."
chchan@png.canwest.com
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