Equalization’s Negative-Option Agreement; or How Provinces Learned to Stop Developing and Love the Transfer
By John Williamson, Vice-President, Research Under Canada’s equalization program, Ottawa transfers nearly $18-billion to provinces with less-robust economies. Today, the three Maritime Provinces receive $3.8-billion each year. Quebec’s allotment is $10-billion. Provincial governments collect tax and royalty revenues from natural resource development, like drilling for oil or fracking shale gas. Equalization, at one time, was…