The Government of Alberta released its final report on the 2022-23 fiscal year on June 29, with some big increases in revenue over the budget projections from last year.
Overall the province saw an $11.6 billion surplus in revenue over the last fiscal year, which was $11.1 billion more than had been projected by the government.
“This year’s results have positioned us to allocate sizable amounts of money towards paying down debt and building savings for the future, while continuing to support the needs of today,” said Alberta Finance Minister Nate Horner.
This was largely made up of an $11.4 billion increase in bitumen royalties in the province, along with an increase of $4.1 billion in corporate income taxes paid—covering losses in revenue of $1.18 billion from fuel and other taxes, and decreased revenue from investments by $1.85 billion.
The government attributed part of the rise in royalties in their 2022-23 fiscal report to the war in Ukraine and increased demand globally for oil and gas.
The rise in corporate income taxes paid was also connected to the increased demand for oil and gas, said the GOA, with stronger financial positions for corporations in the province as a result.
“It’s important to note that we generated a record amount of corporate income tax revenue with the lowest corporate income tax rate in the country – 30 per cent lower than the next lowest province,” said Minister Horner.
“While there are several factors that impact… revenue, this demonstrates that lower taxes mean more economic activity, and it speaks to the importance of maintaining a low tax environment.”
The government blamed geopolitical uncertainty, supply chain issues, high inflation, and interest rate increases for the poor performance of the province’s investment funds.
Budget 2022 had forecast $2.46 billion in revenue from the Alberta Heritage Fund and endowment fund income but had drawn in just $7 million in revenue—or just a quarter of one percent of what had been projected.
