Saskatchewan has passed a law to establish its own Revenue Agency, in a move this province in western Canada wants to use to assert its independence from the federal government, especially regarding the supervision of natural resources.

The new revenue agency will be responsible for managing taxes and related programs in Saskatchewan, according to the province's finance minister, Donna Harpauer.

This means that the province will take care of part of the corporate income tax system currently managed by the federal government.

"I think what we are proposing is a significant enough change and I think consultation is very important," Minister Harpauer said yesterday.

Consequently, once the law comes into effect, corporations in Saskatchewan will have to file two tax returns, one federal and the other provincial.

The finance minister of the Saskatchewan Party (center-right) indicates that she will continue to meet with representatives of corporations to explain the correctness of this decision.

When the law was passed on Tuesday, the finance minister indicated that the preliminary study on establishing the province's Revenue Agency will cost 1.5 million dollars.

But the New Democratic Party, which voted against the bill, fears that the new agency will cost companies and taxpayers tens of millions of dollars annually.

This left-leaning party, which is the official opposition, adds that establishing the agency could harm corporations and will cost the province much more than expected, especially due to the introduction of employees and infrastructure.

Also, the party’s finance spokesperson, Trent Wotherspoon, says that the province creating its own Revenue Agency will make its tax system more complicated for corporations.