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Income Security Advocacy Centre

Income Security Advocacy Centre

ISAC works to address issues of income security and poverty in Ontario

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Ontario 2019 Pre-Budget Consultations: Have your say!

January 23, 2019

The provincial government has asked for input into the upcoming 2019 provincial Budget.

There are currently two pre-budget consultation processes that you can plug into:

  • The Ontario Legislature’s Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs is conducting hearings across the province and accepting written submissions until 5:00pm on January 29.
  • The Minister of Finance is hosting cross-provincial consultations and accepting written submissions (of fewer than 500 words) until February 8.

ISAC appeared at the Standing Committee’s hearings in Toronto on January 15 and sent in a written submission. We have also made a brief submission to the Minister of Finance.

Our submissions recommend:

  • Increasing OW and ODSP rates to reflect the real cost of living
  • Not increasing the OW and ODSP earnings clawback from 50% to 75%
  • Addressing problems with the proposed new Health Spending Account and Local Discretionary Fund
  • Not restricting access to ODSP by changing the program’s definition of disability
  • Ensuring sufficient funding for promised wrap-around services in OW and ODSP
  • Ending the freeze on the scheduled hiring of 175 Employment Standards Officers
  • Funding a comprehensive communications and education plan around employers’ and workers’ Employment Standards rights and responsibilities
  • Funding Employment Standards complaints interpretation services for workers whose first language is not English or French
  • Reinstating paid Personal Emergency Leave days
  • Removing the Employment Standards Act requirement to provide a doctor’s note when sick.

If you want to send your own submission – or want to support our recommendations – you can send an email to either or both consultation processes.

Your submission doesn’t have to be long – even just a few words or a short letter is fine to express your thoughts on how the government should spend money in this upcoming year.

  • How to send a submission to the Standing Committee: https://www.ola.org/en/legislative-business/committees/finance-economic-affairs/parliament-42/notice-hearings/2018-nov-29-notice-hearings-standing-committee-finance-economic-affairs
  • How to send to the Minister of Finance: https://www.ontario.ca/page/budget-consultations

Resources

  • Read our submission to the Standing Committee: Budget 2019 – ISAC Submission To Standing Committee On Finance – January 2019
  • Read the Hansard transcript of our January 15 presentation to the Standing Committee: https://www.ola.org/en/legislative-business/committees/finance-economic-affairs/parliament-42/transcripts/committee-transcript-2019-jan-15#P1205_308208
  • Read our brief submission to the Minister of Finance: Budget 2019 – ISAC Submission To Minister Of Finance – January 2019
  • Lire notre « Proposition en vue de la préparation du budget » en français ici :  Budget 2019 – ISAC Submission – January 2019 – FRENCH

Employment Standards, Policy Advocacy, Provincial Budgets, Social Assistance Rates, Social Assistance Reform, Special Diet Allowance

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1500 – 55 University Avenue, Toronto, ON M5J 2H7
Tel: (416) 597-5820 • Toll Free: 1-866-245-4072 • Fax: (416) 597-5821

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This site contains general legal information for people in Ontario, Canada. It is not intended to be used as legal advice for a specific legal problem. ISAC is a not-for-profit, non-partisan organization. ISAC is funded by Legal Aid Ontario (LAO). The funding for this website is also provided by LAO. The views expressed in any of ISAC’s publications (including written, oral, or visual) are the views of the clinic and do not necessarily reflect those of LAO.