A lot has happened with the CDB in the last few months!
The Federal Government released proposed CDB rules:
A lot of new information was released about the Canada Disability Benefit (CDB) in the federal government’s 2024 Budget in the Spring, even though the government was still in the middle of consultations about what the CDB should look like. You can read more about what they announced at that time in our Spring 2024 update here.
Then, the federal government’s own data revealed that the current maximum benefit of $200 per month would only “lift” 25,000 people out of poverty, and not until 2028. This was a shocking reveal, and so we spent the Summer focusing on getting as many people as possible to let the government know they needed to do better.
When the federal government released a draft of the rules (also known as regulations) that will shape the CDB at the end of June, they also started a public consultation process to ask for feedback on the draft. The public consultation process was open from June 28 to September 23, 2024. Details about that process were laid out in this update we posted on June 28, 2024.
We combed through the draft of regulations, and the associated policy statement, to come up with very specific feedback and recommendations. Then, we encouraged members of the public and those working in the community legal clinic system across Ontario to submit our recommendations word for word. If you are interested in checking out our detailed submissions, you can read our CDB Regulation Submissions Guide here.
Over the summer, we also published an op-ed in Healthy Debate about our concerns with the proposed CDB rules, and rallied with the Disability Justice Network of Ontario, Disability Without Poverty, and the ODSP Action Coalition near Minister Freeland’s downtown Toronto office to get our points across.
Here are our top five ongoing recommendations for the CDB:
- Exempt social assistance and public disability benefits from the income threshold;
- Expand who qualifies for the CDB to better align with the Act’s definition of disability, starting with automatic eligibility for people receiving CPP-Disability;
- Base the CDB amount on an individual’s income, not a couple’s income;
- Increase the maximum benefit amount to reduce poverty; and
- Ensure the CDB’s reconsideration and appeals processes are fair and accessible.
You can find more detail about these points in this post about our recommendations.
What did the public say about the proposed rules for the CDB?
Recently, the government published all of the comments they were sent about the draft regulations. They are posted to this website.
We have started to look through these comments from the public, which generally express anger, disappointment, and frustration alongside many personal stories that are as heartbreaking as they are infuriating.
Here are a few direct quotes from different commenters:
“… the amount of $200/mo slapped us in the face with a cold dose of reality… Please… would you want your sons or daughters living in such poverty? Your mothers, sisters, brothers? I think not. It’s way past time that we are seen as full-fledge Canadians, with just as much right to live a decent life as the next person.”
“I propose that those involved in the construction of this document have absolutely no idea, imagined or otherwise what the reality of living under $15000/annually feels like. They have no concept of the reality of poverty, the discrimination experienced, the permanent doors barred to the poor, the utter and complete lack of alternate resources…”
“Do billionaires have earnings limits? This just continues the same legacy of people with disabilities not have marriage equality rights to others, as well as legislated poverty for most, including those who are ‘lucky’ enough to qualify.”
“The regulators’ rabid paranoia to prevent a potential handful of people from, in their eyes, ‘freeloading’ off of this benefit is coming at the cost of many thousands of innocent people who just want to live in dignity and build a life where we can be a real part of society.”
“I feel the views of people with disabilities were ignored when the first set of regulations were produced. Over 98% of those submitting their views did not want what we got. Most were unequivocal in stating that anybody on any federal, provincial or territorial disability program should be eligible for the Canada Disability Benefit. Forcing everybody to qualify for the very narrow Disability Tax Credit does not address poverty in over 75% of those receiving disability benefits, many of whom are unable to work at all.”
The recommendations and comments we included in our Submissions Guide were submitted more than 340 times. If you were one of the people or organizations who amplified our recommendations, thank you!
Any new info about the application process or the amount?
According to the draft regulations, the DTC is still the only way to access the CDB. Service Canada is designing an application process that people will have to complete on top of the application for the DTC. Some people will be automatically notified that they are eligible, but they will not be automatically enrolled – so they will still need to go through an application process. We join many advocates and individuals who are pushing for automatic enrolment because this proposed process will still make it more difficult for people who are applying to access the benefit.
There has also been no change to the maximum benefit of $200 a month, depending on the qualifying individual’s income, nor any changes to the way that the CDB will be calculated for couples (it will be based on a couple’s income rather than the income of the individual with a disability.)
We are watching to see if our collective advocacy and the public feedback changes anything about the proposed regulations. In the meantime, we are supporting a variety of campaigns that are calling on improvements to the CDB. Disability Without Poverty is running a campaign to “Better the Benefit” which you can read about here.
We expect the final regulations to come out in Spring 2025 before the CDB rolls out in July 2025.
How will the CDB impact someone who has the DTC and will be eligible to receive the CDB, but also receives ODSP or lives in subsidized housing?
We are asking the Ontario government to join six other provinces and territories and publicly commit to not clawing back social assistance for those who will receive the CDB.
There is currently no concrete information about what the Ontario government will choose to do. We are encouraging individuals to contact their Ontario MPP to let them know that when the CDB rolls out, Ontario should not claw back ODSP for people receiving the CDB. You can find your MPP’s contact information by typing in your address here. Maytree is also running a no-clawbacks campaign that you can read about here, which includes other resources and ideas to help with these efforts.
We are also concerned that people who live in Rent-Geared-to-Income (RGI) housing might see their rent go up if they receive the CDB. This is because the CDB, as currently drafted, will likely count as income when calculating rent. We are working behind the scenes on this issue and we’ll share more info soon on how you can speak to your MPP about this.
What’s next?
Between now and the end of June 2025, we expect to see more details about the application process, as well as final details about the CDB. The Federal Budget will also be coming out in Spring 2025, and it may include more information. The Federal Budget consultation process will likely start next week when the federal government releases its Fall Economic Statement. Budget planning time presents a great opportunity to tell the government how important it is to fix the CDB.
Note: We originally posted this Update on December 13. On December 16, the federal government released the Fall Economic Statement, which includes a proposal to exempt the CDB from being treated as income. This is great, however, the federal government has not yet taken the steps to put this fix into law. Overall, it’s encouraging to see that the federal government has acknowledged this problem, and we hope that they take immediate steps to fix this issue and others we have noted.
The Canada Disability Benefit Act states that the government needs to produce and publish a report about its consultation process by December 22, 2024, so we are expecting to see that report soon.
Our ongoing advocacy efforts include connecting with elected officials to continue to advocate for the important changes we have identified, and working with and supporting grassroots groups on their federal and provincial advocacy efforts too.
We will continue to post updates about the CDB and related supports and events here on our website, and through our Twitter/X account here.