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Luke Randall Daily Gleaner columnist

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Election outcomes for business can be a make-or-break event.

During this election season, we're being offered significant tax changes from three of the four major parties. For a small business, it's critical to take a look at the platforms and the record of each party to understand how they will affect our bottom line.

The Green party is suggesting significant changes to our tax system. Its tax shift plan calls for reductions in payroll taxes, specifically a big drop in the employer contributions to CPP and EI.

It is also suggesting income splitting for all Canadian couples. This move would put more money into family budgets to spend locally.

It would raise fuel taxes and repeal part of the Conservative HST cut, raising the HST by one per cent to better fund cities.

The Liberal party's Green Shift held surprising details. Although the Liberal plan does call for raising many fuel taxes, it calls for no increase to gasoline taxes. Further, it's suggesting significant cuts to personal income taxes, and a further one per cent tax cut to both the small-business and corporate tax rates.

The Liberals also announced that they would double the child benefit for families from $1,200 per annum to $2,400 and are promising to retain the Conservative HST cut.

The only downside to this plan is that less of our money will be finding its way into the federal treasury.

The Conservatives are mostly running on their partially implemented tax plan from the last election.

Most notably, the GST was reduced from seven per cent to five per cent.

Small business taxes will fall by one point, and a new capital gains free savings account will come into being Jan. 1. The Tories also introduced significant tax reductions for large corporations.

In this election, they are proposing some fuel tax reductions, but no change to the gasoline tax. The Conservatives have also announced a plan to index the lifetime capital gains exemption for the sale of a small business and change the amount of money a small business can make before it is taxed at the higher general corporate rate.

Although these changes are positive, cuts to small business, corporate, and personal income tax, or even further GST cuts, would have been more beneficial to business overall.

When it comes to levies on small business and the citizens who support us, both of the parties that have a shot at forming government seem committed to reducing our overall burden.

The Green party has solid ideas that would help balance a Conservative minority or complement a Liberal minority.

Hopefully, no matter which party takes office, it will keep in mind the benefit of a thriving small-business sector, while maintaining a healthy planet for tomorrow that our kids can be proud that we've left for them.

Luke Randall is the owner of downtown Fredericton businesses Endeavours and ThinkPlay. He can be reached at info@artstuff.ca.