Economic and Fiscal Update - Ontario’s Action Plan 2020 - Responding to COVID-19, ( Government of Ontario - March 25, 2020 )

[Colour of Poverty]

Colour of Change Network members - see below a summary of the Ontario Economic and Fiscal Update - COVID-19 Action Plan released today - March 25, 2020 - I've highlighted in red those elements that potentially might have a particularly relevance to racial justice related concerns across the province !

fyi - michael

March 2020 Economic and Fiscal Update - Ontario’s Action Plan 2020 - Responding to COVID-19, ( Government of Ontario - March 25, 2020 ) - 

See - https://budget.ontario.ca/2020/marchupdate/pdf/2020-marchupdate.pdf  

Budget adjustments -

Health sector expense is projected to increase by a further $0.9 billion in 2019–20 and  $3.3 billion in 2020–21 primarily due to funding to respond to the COVID‐19 outbreak and  investments in the hospital sector, utilization changes for physician and other services under the

Ontario Health Insurance Plan (OHIP), community-based health care services to address hallway

health care and build a connected and sustainable health care system.

Key initiatives include -   

1)Health care investments to protect people and equip Ontario’s health care professionals with the resources they need to address the COVID‐19 outbreak, including -  

- New acute and critical care beds and 25 assessment centres at hospitals;

- Providing personal protective equipment and other critical medical supplies to staff working  on the front line;

- Increasing emergency capacity in long‐term care homes to assist in COVID‐19 prevention  and containment efforts of affected residents, and to assist in relieving pressures in hospitals;

- Providing public health units with additional resources to continue efforts to identify and  contain COVID‐19 including increasing capacity for home and laboratory testing;

- Enhancing community capacity for patients in retirement homes and assisted living facilities,  so hospitals can focus on providing care for complex COVID‐19 patients requiring  hospitalisation; and -

- A COVID‐19 health sector response contingency fund of $1.0 billion for any emerging needs  to support the Province’s timely response to the outbreak.

2) An across‐the board increase for all public hospitals, and operating funding for newly opened beds

and facility expansions to help hospitals meet the challenges of a growing population,

increase access to highly specialised and innovative treatments and to tackle hallway 

health care;

3) Annualised investments in small‐ and medium‐sized and multi‐site hospitals to help address hallway health care;

4) Targeted investments beginning in 2020–21

to build hospital and community capacity in Durham, Scarborough and London - three regions with among the highest levels of hallway health care;

5) Additional investments to improve the quality of care and resident experience, and 

address recommendations from the Public Inquiry into the Safety and Security of Residents in the Long‐Term Care Homes System; and

6)Continued investment in municipal land ambulance operations to improve coordinationand enhance patient care.

Education sector expense is projected to increase by $0.1 billion in 2019–20 and $0.5 billion in

2020-21

primarily due to increased funding for school boards to support higher student enrolment  and investments in child care programs.

Key initiatives include - 

Funding to support elementary and secondary education programs through the Prioritiesand Partnership Fund;

Funding for student transportation;

Supporting student mental health, including providing $25 million in permanent funding

for approximately 180 mental health workers in secondary schools to better serve students with  mild to moderate mental health issues;

Focusing on priority areas including Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM);

Providing additional opportunities for students to focus on a career path that matches 

their skills and interests through the expansion of programs, such as the Specialist High Skill 

Majors; and

Funding to reflect a one per cent annual increase to compensation costs for teachers 

and education sector workers.

Post-secondary Education sector expense is projected to remain largely unchanged in 2019–20  and increase by $0.1 billion in 2020–21.

The government is making sustained investments in Ontario’s universities and colleges, and student financial assistance.

Key initiatives include - 

Temporarily deferring loan payments and interest accrual for six months for Ontario 

Student  Assistance Program (OSAP) borrowers to ease the financial burden on students during 

the COVID‐19 outbreak;

Increased funding to institutions to support the expansion of Masters degrees and PhD 

spaces;

Continued support for students, through initiatives, such as the expansion of the 

Campus Safety Grant and additional support for students with disabilities; and

Increases in capital expense related to renewal funding for post-secondary infrastructure.

Children’s and Social Services sector expense is projected to increase by $0.8 billion in 2019–20 and $1.2 billion in 2020–21 primarily due to additional supports for people facing economic  hardship during the COVID‐19 outbreak, investments in the Ontario Autism Program, social  assistance, developmental services and child welfare, and additional investments to support  children with physical and/or developmental disabilities.

Key initiatives include - 

Investments to support people and respond to the COVID‐19 outbreak such as - 

- Expanding access to temporary emergency assistance for people in financial need with no  access to financial support and simplifying the application process to help people quickly;

- Covering outbreak‐related costs, such as food, shelter and medical supplies for social  assistance recipients; and

- Enhancing supports for residential facilities, including in developmental services, programs  supporting survivors of domestic violence and protective care for children and youth.

Annual funding of $600 million for the Ontario Autism Program;

A strategy to combat human trafficking, including building public awareness, intervening early and supporting survivors;

Special Services at Home program to support approximately 4,700 more children with  developmental and/or physical disabilities and their families in 2020–21; and

Developmental services, child welfare and other programs to help vulnerable populations. 

Justice sector expense is projected to increase by $0.2 billion in 2019–20 and $0.3 billion in  2020-21

primarily due to compensation costs for the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP), correctional  services staff, provincial government lawyers and judicial officers. 

Other key initiatives include - 

Services that help front‐line staff experiencing post‐traumatic stress disorder;

Hiring additional OPP officers and correctional services staff to support efficient and high‐quality policing services and keeping correctional institutions safe;

Obligations to support payments related to OPP operations and the Crown Liabilities and Proceedings Act, 2019;

Providing additional resources to combat human trafficking in Ontario; and

Investments to maintain stability in the justice system and to ensure ongoing service 

operations in response to the COVID‐19 outbreak.

Other Programs sector expense is projected to increase by $1.1 billion in 2019–20 and  $3.7 billion in 2020–21, primarily due to - 

Investments to respond to the COVID‐19 

outbreak and provide direct support for people and  the economy, while protecting jobs - 

- Proposing to double the Guaranteed Annual Income System (GAINS) payment for six months  for low‐income seniors;

- Helping to address seniors’ isolation by coordinating the delivery of meals and other  essentials;

- Providing retirement homes with additional funding to implement infection control and  active screening measures to protect residents;

- Assisting municipalities and other service providers so they can respond quickly to local  needs associated with the COVID‐19 outbreak;

- Taking measures to maintain housing stability by enhancing existing programs delivered by  local service managers to help people at risk of homelessness;

- Providing supports for Indigenous peoples and communities, including emergency assistance  for urban Indigenous people in financial need, transportation costs for health care  professionals and critical supplies to remote First Nations, and funding to address emergency  planning and self‐isolation needs for people in First Nation communities; and

- Supporting workers through additional funding for skills training programs.

Additional funding to address pressures in electricity cost relief programs, including the  cost of the new Ontario Electricity Rebate for eligible residential, farm and small 

business consumers;

An investment in the Municipal Modernisation Program to support 405 small and rural  municipalities invest in service delivery reviews and projects aimed at increasing 

municipal efficiency, and funding for disaster relief assistance; and

Additional funding for maintenance work to keep Ontario’s highways safe and reliable. 

Temporary Doubling of the Employer Health Tax (EHT) Exemption - retroactively raise the EHT exemption from $490,000 to $1 million for 2020. The exemption would return to its current level of 

$490,000  on January 1, 2021.  

Providing Provincial Tax Interest and Penalty Relief for Ontario Businesses - from April 1, 2020 to August 31, 2020.

Regional Opportunities Investment Tax Credit - a 10 per cent refundable Canadian-controlled private Corporate Income Tax credit for capital investments (not available in the Ottawa and GTA surrounding regions !).   

--

michael kerr
Coordinator
Colour of Poverty - Colour of Change
# 505 - 123 Edward St.
Toronto, Ontario  M5G 1E2  Canada
Phone - 416-966-3882
Fax - 416-971-6780
E-mail - kerr.m...@gmail.com

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