Thank you, Mr. Chair.
My name is Rick Larabie, and I'm the fire chief here in Ottawa. I am with you today, however, in my capacity as a member of the National Government Relations Committee of the Canadian Association of Fire Chiefs. On behalf of the association and the almost 1,000 fire chiefs who comprise our membership, thank you for providing this opportunity to present our pre-budget views.
Underlying this brief is our thesis that a prosperous society needs more than just financial security. The fire services regard safety as an inalienable right of all Canadians and a key to national prosperity. An overwhelming 97.7% of our survey respondents said that the federal government has a significant role to play in ensuring that all Canadians receive a basic level of protection against fire and other perils.
The previous standing committee posed three specific questions on various aspects of the federal tax system. Our responses to the committee's questions numbers one and three provide recommendations as to how the taxation system can be used as a tool to improve the safety of Canadians and thus enhance the prosperity. Corporate taxation is not a fire service issue. Therefore, this brief did not address question number two.
The committee's first question was whether changes made to taxes, fees, and other charges should be broadly based or targeted. From our perspective, the safety of citizens and of the fire services personnel who protect them can best be addressed through targeted approaches. We then go on to describe how the tax system can be used to encourage the installation of automatic sprinkler systems in existing non-residential buildings and existing residential high-rise buildings. The tax system can also be used to provide the owners of low-rise residential structures with a tax incentive to install such systems in these buildings.
The third question deals with issues surrounding the personal income tax system. Our major recommendation in this regard is that volunteer firefighters and their officers should be entitled to a personal income tax credit. Of the 3,492 fire departments in Canada, 3,184--which is about 91%--are volunteer departments. Of the firefighting personnel in Canada, 84,314--that's 78%--are volunteers. The volunteer component is facing severe problems relating to recruiting and retaining the personnel required to protect the citizens of their communities.
Without measures to encourage volunteers, municipalities will face either diminished protection or increased taxation, neither of which will enhance their prosperity. Previous versions of this committee have shown themselves to be in favour of additional financial recognition for the work performed by the volunteer fire service.
In its report tabled in the House last December during the previous session of Parliament, the standing committee wrote the following:
The Committee believes that volunteers--and the hours of service they give--are important to the fabric of our nation. In some cases, such as emergency service workers, they provide essential services that otherwise would not be performed, or that would be performed by municipalities and funded by higher tax rates. Volunteer service is, in our view, an activity that deserves recognition.
In the previous Parliament, when the standing committee decided to kill Bill C-273, it said:
Whereas the Committee is generally supportive of the intent of Bill C-273 and feels that those who provide volunteer emergency services should be recognized by the federal government through the tax system, there are unresolved questions.
Therefore, the Canadian Association of Fire Chiefs again recommends that a personal income tax credit be made available to volunteer fire services personnel.
We have provided the standing committee and the finance minister with comprehensive documentation on this issue, and we find it difficult to understand the government's continued intransigence. A major problem facing volunteer fire departments is the hardship experienced by employers, especially those in smaller and family-owned firms, when their employees respond to calls. Accordingly, we have recommended a tax credit for the employers of volunteer firefighters in recognition of the business losses these employers face.
Your kind attention to our concerns is deeply appreciated.
Thank you.