The provincial sales tax is back and there's still a split in support in Burnaby.
The harmonized sales tax came into effect on July 1, 2010. Following the successful anti-HST campaign, it was scrapped on April 1 and B.C. returned to a two-tax system, with the provincial sales tax and the goods and services tax.
The Burnaby Board of Trade held a few PST information seminars at the beginning of the year, but the president and CEO said many businesses were not prepared for the transition or still opposed its return.
"The majority of our members were not supportive of a return to PST and many of them remember it as a more cumbersome system," Paul Holden said. "There will also be a significant number of businesses, especially in the small to medium category, for whom this will be their first experience of PST, so there will undoubtedly be a learning curve for them."
But Holden said the hospitality and restaurant businesses have been looking forward to the transition back to the PST.
"Some sectors are, of course, pleased the PST is returning . and I'm sure they are well prepared for the transition," he said.
The board of trade has put out information about the transition on its website, through email and newsletters.
"I still feel there are probably a large number of businesses out there (that) may not be fully prepared," he said. "I would encourage those businesses who may be uncertain of exactly what to do to visit our website or the various government information resources."
After being in business for 40 years, Romana restaurant has seen many politicians and policies come and go, and the return of the PST is just another temporary inconvenience to deal with, according to Jenny Siormanolakis, spokesperson for the restaurant.
According to the Canadian Restaurant and Food Services Association, restaurant sales in B.C. dropped when the HST was introduced, with a total of $1.5 billion in lost sales.
"For us, it's just another ripple," said Siormanolakis in a phone interview. "We've been preparing, we started last week."
She said the transition has been an inconvenience as it takes up a lot of time to update all the systems.
"We had been trying to find the documents requested, the forms - there's been a couple of hours work on that end," she said. "My sister spent all (Monday) morning on the computer system. It's not been fun but it wasn't anything major."
Siormanolakis said all that's important is if the customers are happy.
"We're just a small business and we're going to keep chugging along and see what else the governments have in store for us," she said. "Taxes will always be there."
Jubilee Bikes on Imperial Avenue has been looking forward to the switch back to the PST by preparing for it since the year's start.
Jubilee has been in business since 1974 and owner Neil Davies says a lot of bikes have been on hold for weeks for people to purchase now - as bicycles, bike parts and safety items are exempt from the PST.
"Since the start of the year, when anybody had in mind or thinking of getting a new bicycle, this basically delayed their purchase until now," Davies said. "Why wouldn't you wait?"
Although it's been a bit of a chore to have two taxes, Davies said it's about being organized.
"Cycling itself is on the rise, whether it be people using bikes for commuting, health and fitness or cleaner air," he said. "The exemption for bicycles from the PST is a positive thing in general, and I just think it's good for the environment and good for people to look forward to something that is tax exempt."
Basically, Davies said he's glad to see the HST go. "With the HST, the onus was on the business owner and retailers, it possibly affected our margins and in some cases we had to eat the tax to make it easier for consumers to make the purchase," he said.
Davies said the only confusion may arise from explaining to customers some of the items or services not exempt from the PST, such as bicycle accessories including cycling computers or racks that go on bikes.
"There's some gray area and it's a little bit confusing, but it was like this pre-HST," he said. "We're well versed on what to do, but trying to explain it to certain consumers can be challenging at times."
But, not all businesses are glad to see the HST cast out.
For B.C. film, the PST is a negative hit to its industry this year - as it has to compete with other provinces that are exempt from the tax.
Paul Clausen, vice-president of Burnaby's Mammoth Studios, said the industry was a big supporter of the save the HST campaign, as it was a "big deal for our specific industry."
"It is what it is," he said. "We're just hoping things are going to turn around for the province. We're hoping the government at least will try to do something with the PST."
Clausen said he hopes the province will make an exception for film as they did in Eastern Canada, where the industry is considered a manufacturer and is PST exempt.
For more information about the PST, visit www.gov. bc.ca or bbot.ca/pst-transtion. sseccia@burnabynow.com
