Ontario Budget 2008: Backgrounder: Quality of Life

March 25, 2008

The McGuinty government is committed to improving the quality of life of all Ontarians, particularly the most vulnerable citizens.  The government wants to ensure that all Ontarians have the opportunities and tools they need to reach their full potential.

The government’s Cabinet Committee on Poverty Reduction will develop a focused poverty reduction strategy with measures and reasonable targets by the end of 2008.

CHILDREN AND YOUTH

Better Dental Care for Low-Income Families

The government is proposing to invest $135 million over three years to provide dental services to low-income Ontarians, with investments starting in 2008-09.

Student Nutrition Program

The government is proposing to invest an additional $32 million over three years in the Student Nutrition Program.  The program supports local organizations in delivering nutritious meals and snacks to children and youth in schools and community settings. The new investment would more than double annual funding for this program.

Parenting and Family Literacy Centres

The government is providing an additional investment of $2 million in the 2008-09 school year to establish 34 more Parenting and Family Literacy Centres in the province.  These centres help prepare children for successful school entry.

LOW-INCOME ONTARIANS

Ontario Child Benefit

In July 2008, the Ontario Child Benefit (OCB) will be delivered through the personal income tax system and will assist over 600,000 low-income families with children under 18.  For 2008, the maximum OCB payment will be $600 annually per child.

Investing in Social Housing

The government is providing $100 million in 2007-08 that may be used to rehabilitate existing social housing, including energy-efficiency improvements. Key public-sector social housing providers will also be able to access up to $500 million in low-cost loans through OSIFA.

Increased Support for Social Assistance

To help social assistance recipients, the government is proposing to increase the basic adult allowance and maximum shelter allowance by two per cent in 2008-09.  This would provide about 690,000 Ontario Works and Ontario Disability Support Program recipients with an additional $36 million in income support in 2008-09 and an additional $87 million in 2009-10.

Minimum Wage

The government is raising the minimum wage to $10.25 by 2010, with consecutive annual increases of 75 cents on March 31, 2008 and onwards.  After a nine-year period during which the minimum wage was frozen, the government has increased it five times from $6.85 per hour in 2003 to $8.75 at March 31, 2008.

Improving Facilities for Children and Vulnerable Ontarians

The government is providing $30 million in one-time funding to support expansion and renovation projects at community agencies that provide services to children and vulnerable populations, including families requiring child care services; women experiencing abuse; adults and children with developmental disabilities; and youth with emotional or behavioural problems.

REDUCING PROPERTY TAX

Help for Seniors

The government is proposing to help low- and moderate-income seniors offset their property taxes:

• $1 billion over five years for a new Senior Homeowners’ Property Tax Grant of up to $500 a year by 2010 for seniors with low and moderate incomes who own their homes
• $16 million over four years to enhance the Ontario Property and Sales Tax Credit program to ensure that senior couples receiving the guaranteed minimum level of income from governments receive the full benefit of these credits this year.

A Fairer Appeal System

The government is proposing to improve the fairness and transparency of the property assessment appeal system by streamlining the appeal process, and requiring that the onus of proof on assessment appeals be reversed so that the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation would be required to prove the accuracy of property assessments.

IMPROVING ACCESS TO COMMUNITY SERVICES THROUGH 211 ONTARIO

The Budget proposes to invest more than $13 million over four years to expand 211 Ontario province-wide beginning in 2008-09.  211 Ontario is an integrated telephone and Internet-based system providing users with one-stop information about, and referrals to, local community social, health and related government programs and services.

SUPPORTING OPPORTUNITIES FOR THE ABORIGINAL PEOPLES OF ONTARIO

The government is committed to working with the Aboriginal peoples of Ontario, both on and off reserve, to expand economic development opportunities and improve their quality of life.

The government will invest approximately $600 million on average annually in initiatives across government to improve quality of life for Aboriginal peoples, including:

• $300 million for children and social services
• $85 million for health services
• $80 million for justice and policing initiatives
• $45 million for education and training programs.

The government will invest:

• $4 million annually in increased funding to the Akwe:go program to provide at-risk urban Aboriginal children and their families with culturally relevant and community-based supports
• $5 million more in the 2008-09 school year for Aboriginal education
• $1.5 million, to be matched by the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario, to establish a Research Chair in Aboriginal and Rural Health at the Northern Ontario School of Medicine.

PROTECTING ONTARIO’S ENVIRONMENT

Protecting the environment improves Ontario’s air, water and land, and helps improve Ontarians’ quality of life:

• $10 million over four years to support the province’s plan banning cosmetic pesticides
• Proposing to extend the Retail Sales Tax exemption on bicycles purchased for $1,000 or less and related safety equipment until December 31, 2010
• Proposing to extend the Retail Sales Tax exemption for qualifying new ENERGY STAR® household appliances and light bulbs to the end of August 2009.

ACHIEVEMENTS

Recent initiatives to improve Ontarians’ quality of life include:

• Proposing to expand the Land Transfer Tax Refund Program to include first-time homebuyers of resale homes, which will benefit thousands of Ontarians entering the housing market, and delivering $125 million of additional relief each year
• Doubling the number of children receiving autism intervention services to 1,300 and increasing the funding to $145 million annually
• Providing the Employment Standards program with an additional $3.6 million annually to improve front-line service and shorten claims-resolution times
• Investing more than $500 million since 2003 in developmental services and to support those with disabilities
• Creating a new statutory holiday in February – Family Day.

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