A carbon tax takes effect today and it's not just at the pumps where you'll feel the effects. 

The initial rates are $20 per tonne of carbon emissions. That is set to rise to $50 per tonne by 2022. Right now, for Manitobans, that means a 4.4 cents addition to the price of a litre of gas, about four cents to a cubic metre of natural gas, and also drives up the cost of propane, butane and aviation fuel.

The Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) says that increase over the next three years has the potential to cost $2,569 per year for the average Canadian family by 2022. The CTF says "the carbon tax will also increase the price of food and clothing, and will mean lost jobs and struggling or bankrupt businesses, and will hit rural Canadians particularly hard, where driving is a necessity."

However, the federal government claims that many people will receive more back than it costs them due to an income tax credit. The rebates start at 128 dollars annually, and vary between provinces and increase for people with spouses or dependents at home. The federal government claims that in 2019 the tax will only cost the average household $232.

In Manitoba the credit is calculated as follows for 2019:

  • $170 for a single adult or the first adult in a couple.
  • $85 for the second adult in a couple. Single parents will receive this amount for their first child.
  • $42 for each child in the family (starting with the second child for single parents).

That means a family of four will receive $339 in 2019. The credits will increase in the following years as follows: