Community and Protective Services Committee
Comité des services communautaires et de protection
and Council / et au Conseil
24 April 2008 / le 24 avril 2008
Submitted by/Soumis par : Steve Kanellakos,
Deputy City Manager/Directeur municipal adjoint,
Community and Protective Services/Services communautaires et de
protection
Contact Persons/Personnes ressource :
Colleen
Hendrick, Director/Directrice
Community
Funding and Cultural Services/Services culturels et financement communautaire
(613) 580-2424
x, Colleen.Hendrick@ottawa.ca
Danielle Masse, Director/Directrice
Employment and
Financial Assistance/Services d’emploi et d’aide financière
580-2424
x,43080, danielle.masse@ottawa.ca
SUBJECT:
|
The ONTARIO CHILD BENEFIT and restructuring of social assistance |
|
|
|
OBJET :
|
La prestation
ontarienne pour enfants et la restructuration du programme d'aide sociale |
Que le Comité des services communautaires et de
protection recommande au Conseil municipal d’adopter le présent rapport et
d’approuver la présentation d’une requête au gouvernement de l’Ontario
sollicitant le versement intégral de l’allocation de retour aux études et de l’allocation
d’habillement de 2008, dans le cadre de la première année d’une stratégie de
transition ayant pour but d’alléger le fardeau financier, en août et en
novembre 2008, des prestataires de l’aide sociale qui ont des enfants; et que
la totalité de ces subsides soient versés par le gouvernement ontarien.
EXECUTIVE
SUMMARY
In the spring of 2007, the Province released general information about two important and related changes: one is to no longer deduct the National Child Benefit Supplement (NCBS) from social assistance cheques, and the second is to upload a portion of benefits paid to children of parents who are on Ontario Works and Ontario Disability Support Program through a new program called the Ontario Child Benefit (OCB). These changes will begin effective July-August 2008, with full implementation by 2011; however, not all the details of these changes are known at this time.
This report provides information on the impact
of the new OCB program and recommends a request to the Province to issue the
full amount of the Back to School and Winter Clothing Allowances for social
assistance recipients in 2008 as a year 1 strategy to reduce hardship through
the transition of consolidating these benefits within the new Ontario Child
Benefit.
Au printemps
2007, la Province a rendu publics des renseignements généraux concernant deux
changements importants en la matière : le premier consiste à cesser la
déduction du supplément de la Prestation nationale pour enfants (SPNE) des
chèques d’aide sociale, et le deuxième, à prélever une part des prestations
versées aux enfants dont les parents bénéficient du programme Ontario au
travail ou du Programme ontarien de soutien aux personnes handicapées aux
termes de la nouvelle initiative appelée Prestation ontarienne pour enfants
(POE). Ces changements entreront en vigueur en juillet et en août 2008 et leur
mise en œuvre complète sera terminée d’ici 2011. Cependant, à ce jour, nous ne
connaissons pas encore tous les détails relatifs à ces modifications.
Le présent rapport fournit des renseignements
sur l’impact du nouveau programme POE et recommande également de déposer une
requête auprès du gouvernement de l’Ontario sollicitant le versement intégral
de l’allocation de retour aux études et de l’allocation d’habillement payables
aux prestataires de l’assurance sociale en 2008, dans le cadre de la première
année d’une stratégie de transition visant à atténuer les difficultés
financières de ces personnes durant l’implantation du nouveau programme qui
consiste à consolider ces allocations en une seule, soit la Prestation
ontarienne pour enfants.
With implementation
of the new program changes, clients on social assistance will continue to
receive the National Child Benefit Supplement. The NCBS, the new Ontario Child
Benefit, and the Canada Child Tax Benefit will be consolidated into one child
benefit cheque that will be sent out to families by the Canada Revenue
Agency. Municipal funding that
currently results from the NCBS claw back will instead be realized from social
assistance restructuring and the introduction of the new 100% provincially
funded OCB. The impact on actual
funding will be included in the City's budget submission for 2009.
National Child
Benefit Reinvestment Fund
With the
introduction of the OCB and resulting social assistance restructuring, the
province expects municipalities to "maintain and build on local programs
for families and children in need that are currently supported by NCBS
reinvestment dollars. Since social
assistance is being restructured, and the OCB is funded 100% by the province,
local programs for families and children should not be negatively impacted by
these changes". (Province of
Ontario, Q&A, Dec. 21, 2007).
In 1998 the
provincial government provided specific objectives for NCBS reinvestment:
·
To help prevent and reduce the depth of child
poverty; and
·
To promote attachment to the workforce - resulting
in fewer families having to rely on social assistance - by ensuring that
families will always be better off working.
The NCB Reinvestment Fund is a valuable tool for
building collaborative relationships and working partnerships between CPS and
the community to strengthen families and reduce child poverty. As part of restructuring, the province will
no longer determine objectives for municipal reinvestment but has stated the
expectation is that the reinvestment be maintained and local programs for
families and children not be negatively impacted by these changes.
Staff
will continue to monitor the changes in the size and composition of the social
assistance caseload and will be monitoring the financial impact of the new
program following its implementation this summer. The impact of these changes on the NCBS Reinvestment Fund will be
known by the fall of 2008 and any implications will be considered during the
2009 budget process.
Currently, parents
in receipt of social assistance receive benefits on behalf of their children
including basic needs allowance, a winter clothing allowance and a back to
school allowance for children under the age of 18. The benefits are cost shared 80% Province / 20% City.
Beginning,
July-August 2008, the Province will introduce a new program called the Ontario
Child Benefit (OCB) that essentially uploads some children’s social assistance
benefits to the Province. These
benefits will be consolidated into the monthly OCB and dispersed to eligible
low-income families (including social assistance clients) with no 20%
cost-sharing requirement from municipalities.
The total monthly income (Ontario Works, Child Tax Benefit, NCBS and the
Ontario Child Benefit) available to social assistance families before and after
the changes is depicted in Document 1.
According to the
Province, the introduction of the OCB will result in savings to the City. In December 2007, the MCSS provided
municipalities with an estimate of those savings for the period of
August 2008 to March 2009. Savings for
the City of Ottawa, based on the caseload as of September 2007, is estimated to
be
$1.2 million[1]. However the size and composition of the OW
and ODSP caseload after July 2008 will impact the final amount. The Department will include estimates of the
impact as part of its 2009 budget submission.
The Canada Revenue
Agency will be providing the OCB to low-income families with children,
regardless of their income source, based on families having completed their tax
return. For social assistance clients
who are eligible to receive the OCB but who are not receiving it, (e.g. because
they have not yet filed their income tax return for the previous year, they are
newcomers to Ontario, or they have a newborn who is not yet registered for the
Child Tax Benefit) the Province has created a transition child benefit that
will be available to eligible clients (as of August 2008) pending their receipt
of OCB. The Employment and Financial
Assistance (EFA) Branch staff will be responsible for the administration of
this 100% provincial transition benefit.
Over the coming months, EFA staff will be trained on the detailed
provincial directives and guidelines to ensure compliance with the legislation
related to the OCB, the transition benefit and social assistance
restructuring. All other mandatory and
discretionary benefits for children (e.g. dental, vision care, special diet
etc.) will continue to be issued by the EFA Branch.
The OCB is being
phased-in over five years. In July
2007, eligible families received a one-time payment of $250. Regular payments of $50 monthly will begin
in July 2008 ($600 annually). The OCB will grow as follows until its full
implementation:
·
$60.08 monthly ($805 annually) per child in 2009
·
$75.00 monthly ($900 annually) per child in 2010
·
$91.67 monthly ($1,100 annually) per child in 2011
The maximum benefit
will be paid to families with children under eighteen years of age whose
adjusted net income is $20,000 annually or less and will be reduced
incrementally based on their adjusted net income over $20,000.
The Back to School and Winter Clothing Allowances
serve a specific need for families receiving social assistance. Beginning in 2008, these benefits will no
longer be provided in August and November as in previous years. In 2008, families receiving social assistance
will not have adequate finances or notice period to save money to address these
particular needs. The City’s
consultation with the Poverty Issues Advisory Committee (PIAC) looked at these
factors. As a result, the PIAC carried a motion, subsequently built into this
report, that the Province issue these allowances in 2008 as a transition
strategy.
The City should also ask that this transition
strategy (one-time payment in 2008) be paid 100% by the Province. This is consistent with the Association of
Municipalities (AMO) position that any new initiatives, programs or
expenditures related to social and health programs be fully funded by the
Province.
The Province's intention with restructuring and the
new OCB program is to change the way it provides benefits for children of
low-income families regardless of source of income. Ultimately, families with children on OW and the ODSP will be
slightly better off and the programs will benefit all children of low-income
families in Ontario, whether the parents work or receive social
assistance. Also the OCB will help
families make the transition from social assistance to employment because
parents would continue to receive the OCB after they begin working.
Staff attended the January meeting of the
Poverty Issues Advisory Committee and the April Health and Social Services
Advisory Committee meeting to provide a verbal summary about the OCB program
and social assistance restructuring.
Both Advisory Committees were supportive of this report and endorsed the
recommendation.
The impact to the City of Ottawa resulting from
restructuring and the introduction of the OCB will be included in the City's
budget submission for 2009 as the actual amount of funding will be determined
by the size and composition of the OW and ODSP caseload after the program is
introduced in July 2008.
This report supports the following City Strategic Directions:
E.
Sustainable
Healthy and Active City:
4. Upload
the cost of social services, social housing and public health while retaining
responsibility for local administration to reflect the needs of the community.
7.
Ensure that cultural and recreation programs are offered across a range
of levels of activity such that every resident, and in particular, every child,
has a chance to participate.
Community and Protective Services
Department will action any direction received as part of consideration of this
report.
Document 1 – Comparison of Total Monthly
Income
DOCUMENT 1
Family Type
|
Before OCB
|
After OCB |
Net Difference |
|
|
#1 |
Single parent with one child (age 13-17) |
$1243.00 |
$1244.00 |
+ $1.00 |
|
#2 |
Single parent with two children (ages 13-17) |
$1589.00 |
$1610.00 |
+ $21.00 |
|
#3 |
Couple with two children (ages 13-17) |
$1684.00 |
$1727.00 |
+ $43.00 |
|
#4 |
Couple with two children (one age 0-12 and one age 13-17) |
$1640.00 |
$1710.00 |
+ $70.00 |
|
#5 |
Single parent with two children (ages 0-12) |
$1485.00 |
$1576.00 |
+ $91.00 |
|
#6 |
Couple with four children (ages 0-12) |
$2221.00 |
$2377.00 |
+
$156.00 |
* CRA payment includes the Canada Child Tax Credit, the NCBS and the Ontario Child Benefit
[1] Estimated savings were obtained for each CMSM/DSSAB by computing the difference between social assistance payments before July 2008 (basic needs, shelter, back-to-school and winter clothing allowances, net of the NCBS deduction) and social assistance payments effective July/August 2008 (adult portion of basic needs, shelter). Estimates were based on the Ontario Works and ODSP caseloads as of September 2007.