The Liberal government has admitted it gave well-to-do people an unfair advantage by offering every household a 10 per cent discount on their electrical bills issued by NB Power.
It has begun exploring the idea of clawing back savings for high-income earners.
René Legacy, the finance minister, told reporters at the legislature last week parts of the $100 million in discounts could be redirected to people more in need.
He said it was just one of a suite of affordability measures the Liberal government was considering to help poor people struggling with higher bills for electricity, food, rent and other necessities.
He made the pledge after David Coon, leader of the small opposition Green party, said during question period on Thursday that the wealthiest families earning $130,000 or more had benefited from $36 million in discounts since the program began a year and a half ago.
Asked why it took his administration so long to realize the error of its ways, Legacy said the Liberals introduced the measure shortly after their provincial election win in October 2024 and time was of the essence.
“We did it to make sure that we were going to help the people that needed to be helped right away,” he said. “It was within weeks. Now that we’ve had a bit more time to look at it to see if there’s other opportunities, we’re discussing with the Department of Social Development to look if there’s a suite of services that we can offer and some help they can offer.”
The finance minister said he wanted to have the changes in place by winter, when New Brunswickers turn up their thermostats and use a lot more electrical heat.
He also said the government still had to work out how a rebate would be income-tested and what other affordability measures could be offered.
“There’s all kinds of programs,” Legacy said, adding that it could involve more tax breaks for low-income households.
The across-the-board 10 per cent rebate for NB Power’s residential customers was a Liberal election campaign promise. Coon, meanwhile, had campaigned to offer only low-income households help with their NB Power bills.
He expressed dismay during question period Thursday that high-income households had benefited from the Liberal scheme, citing a recent CBC report.
“That’s $36 million doled out to the 70,000 households with incomes above $130,000 since the rebate program began,” Coon said during question period.
“That’s $36 million to those who don’t need it. This is double the $18 million in assistance provided to New Brunswick’s 70,000 lowest-income households, which desperately need help. Because the well-off are getting unneeded electricity assistance, lower-income families are not getting enough relief.”
Afterward, Coon told reporters he was happy with the government’s pledge to reform the program but was critical that it had taken the Liberals 18 months to change their mind.
Kris Austin, energy critic for the Progressive Conservatives, the biggest opposition party in the legislature, pointed out the Liberals were running a record $1.4-billion deficit.
He was concerned they would eliminate the 10 per cent discount for too many families, particularly middle-income earners.
“To take that away would do a disservice to all New Brunswickers. I think if they want to add something to it, to, you know, help the poor people that need it more, I certainly wouldn’t oppose that. Problem is, the government’s got themselves in a tight fiscal position, so I don’t know what more they can do.”
By John Chilibeck, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Original Published on May 19, 2026 at 06:12
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