Last week there was news in the CBC ..
Last Updated: Friday, October 27, 2006 | 10:59 AM ET CBC News
Activities that boost children’s “cardio-respiratory fitness” should be the focus of a federal tax credit, an expert panel urged Thursday as it outlined the types of activities and costs that should qualify.
The panel was appointed to advise Prime Minister Stephen Harper and his Conservatives on their proposed tax credit for parents with children in organized sports, proposed in May 2006 to fight obesity and encourage fitness among young Canadians.
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At a news conference, the panel recommended that:
- The tax credit not be issued unless the activity includes at least one session per week for a minimum of eight weeks.
- For children under 10, eligible activities should include at least 30 minutes of sustained and vigorous activity.
- For those over 10, the time rises to 60 minutes.
- The federal government let parents claim up to $500 per child, but give them an annual maximum refund of $78.50 per child.
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MORE: “Give tax credit for activities that ‘make kids sweat’: panel”
Columnist Paul Wiecek from the Winnipeg Free Press wrote an interesting article today in Saturday’s paper.
Sweat equity – Curling in tough spot with federal tax credit criteria
Sat Nov 4 2006 // by PAUL WIECEK
WHEN is a sport tax deductible?
When it makes your kids sweat.
That was the verdict last week of a federal government panel charged with the task of figuring out how to implement an election promise by the Conservatives to give a tax credit to parents with kids in organized sport.
But if sweat is the baseline for getting a credit of up to $500 and a refund of up to $78.50 a year from the feds, then whither curling and the tens of thousands of parents in this province with kids tossing organized rocks at houses?
It’s a been a hot topic all week on curling chat rooms on the Internet.
“I’m thinking if your kid is on the front end—you get a tax credit,” wrote one contributor to a forum at curlingzone.com. “Back end—no tax credit.”
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Curling taxes ‘sweat’ equity test
A federal government panel last week recommended a proposed new tax credit for parents who put their kids in organized sports go only to families with children in activities “that make them sweat.” So, does that include parents who put their kids in curling—a sport the Manitoba Curling Association estimates is played by one in 10 Manitobans every winter? Here’s the case for and against curling:
PRO
- Look, curling is an Olympic sport. That makes the case all by itself.
- It’s cold out on the ice, so that keeps curlers from sweating, but that doesn’t mean they’re not working hard.
- You ever take a good look at the body on David Nedohin? You telling me he’s not an athlete?
- Sure, skips do more standing around than anything, but what kind of workout does a backup goaltender—or a starting outfielder—get?
CON
- Luge is an Olympic sport, too. Does that mean I’m going to have to give my tax dollars to every parent who buys their kid a toboggan, too?
- It’s cold out on the ice in hockey, too, and yet those guys manage to work up a sweat. What’s that tell you?
- You ever take a good look at the body on Randy Ferbey? You telling me he’s an athlete?
- Do they still have ashtrays on the ice?
Sound preposterous?
The panel ruled the sport must provide children a cardio-respiratory workout, which the chairman, Dr. Kellie Leitch, characterized as something that “makes them sweat.”
While no specific sports were identified, parents of kids involved in everything from hockey to basketball, speed skating to gymnastics would seem to meet the criteria.
But what about curling, where participants are seldom observed to actually break a sweat and where at least one player on every team—the skip—almost never even takes off their jacket?
Russ Hinds, who co-ordinates the Charleswood Curling Club junior program, says the sweeping involved in curling is definitely an aerobic activity. “The sweeping involves short bursts of energy. It’s like high-impact, interval training.”
But what about skips?
“You can’t separate the players into different groups,” says Jennifer Jones second Jill Officer. “Curling is curling. A team’s a team. And Jennifer does all the same workouts as the rest of us when we’re not on the ice. “She does sweep every now and then, but her workout is more of a mental one.”
The Manitoba Curling Association doesn’t have exact numbers on how many kids curl every winter in Manitoba, but they do know that 2,400 kids signed up for Learn to Curl programs last winter alone. There are 220 kids curling just at Charleswood this winter.
It costs somewhere from $40 to $75 to sign a child up for a curling league for the winter and Asham Curling Supplies has a special junior curling package that allows parents to outfit their children with shoes, a broom and gloves for $99.95. Toss in another $30 or so per child to curl in one bonspiel and a parent can expect to pay close to $200 per kid curling for a winter.
While curling still has a way to go before it will entirely shed the image of beer-guzzling curlers smoking on the ice, MCA executive director Ian Staniloff said curling’s status as an Olympic sport will make it difficult for authorities to say it doesn’t meet tax credit criteria.
“I know curling was involved in some of the presentations in Ottawa,” said Staniloff, “and I’m told that while we didn’t get a yes or no answer, all indications are curling was regarded positively.”
Elite curlers are all involved in serious off-ice training programs and Officer has a personal trainer. She was in good enough shape last summer on holidays to trezk to the base camp of Mount Everest.
“We’ve played in bonspiels the last two weekends in a row,” she said yesterday, hours before her team played the first game of still another bonspiel this weekend, the Asham Women’s Open at the Asham Arena.
“And I can tell you I feel it in my body. It’s a workout, there’s no question.”
The last word is left to Hinds, who noted the not- unusual sight of an ambulances outside a curling club in the winter offers some compelling anecdotal evidence of the physical demands of the sport.
“If it wasn’t a workout,” ventured Hinds, “then how come people seem to have heart attacks on the ice so often?”
SOURCE: Winnipeg Free Press
© 2006 Winnipeg Free Press. All Rights Reserved.
It will be interesting to see the implementation of this, because personally – I think the best way is to make this tax credit available to anybody who has a receipt in hand. Put the onus on the institution or organized team or association to be responsible and authorized as an official and recognized sports organization in the eyes of Canada Revenue Agency. This way, misuse and problems or clarifications would fall on the organizations for issuing them – not the taxpayers claiming them.
They can be like donation receipts .. these sporting event receipts. Should be numbered with a Registered Charity or Sports organization number on them, and consecutively numbered – and subject for audit by Canada Revenue Agency.
This way – even taxpayers like me – who has no children – can support Canadian Sports at the basic local level (i.e. maybe get my nieces into a curling league this winter as a team !) .. and have the receipt issued in my name. Then I would able to claim the deduction.
You can read more about this tax credit on the Canada Revenue Agency Site:
Minister of Finance Appoints Expert Panel to Advise on Children’s Fitness Tax Credit
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