Unpaid PST plops porta potty rental company in B.C. Supreme Court
Posted February 20, 2023 7:41 am.
Last Updated February 20, 2023 7:42 am.
A porta potty rental company and the province had a heated debate in B.C. Supreme Court over an unpaid tax bill earlier this month.
The case dates back to 2015 when GFL Environmental’s predecessor Coast Environmental was offering a package deal for porta potty rentals that included the rentals, cleaning services, and waste removal services for a cost of $120.
From 2015 to 2017, the company did $9,479,657 in business but didn’t collect any provincial sales tax, according to court submissions.
That didn’t sit well with the province, which audited the company and ordered them to pay PST on the full amount — a tax bill coming in for around $650,000.
GFL Environmental has appealed the decision, and while the company agrees PST should have been charged for the rentals, it says about 80 per cent of the business was in waste removal services, which are exempt from PST.
It argued it should only be taxed on 20 per cent of the total, which would give it a significantly lower tax bill, of around $133,000.
Despite sitting on the case for some time, the B.C. Supreme Court didn’t pass a definitive judgment on how much tax is owed, however, the court did allow GFL’s appeal of the order and referred it back to B.C.’s director of PST for reconsideration.
