November 16, 2022

Bill C-22, An Act to reduce poverty and to support the financial security of persons with disabilities by establishing the Canada disability benefit and making a consequential amendment to the Income Tax Act, is the enabling legislation that will create the new Canada Disability Benefit.

March of Dimes Canada presented this submission on Bill C-22 to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities (HUMA).

Our recommendations in this submission are based on:

• A March of Dimes Canada survey conducted in autumn 2020 with over 1000 respondents as part of strategic plan consultations. This survey indicated the vital importance of financial security as an independence enabler for our clients. These results led to increased federal advocacy on financial security and fully accessible access to government benefits, program and services.
• Feedback we received in June 2022 through four focus groups with 36 working age  people with disabilities, family members and/or caregivers. These focus groups were hosted in partnership with Inclusion Canada and part of the Disability Inclusion Action Plan’s Financial Security pillar consultations, centered on the Canada Disability Benefit for low income working age people with disabilities.
• A co-creation/workshop session hosted by March of Dimes Canada in partnership with Prosper Canada in October 2022. The session hosted over 50 participants including staff from community organizations, volunteers, and working age individuals with lived experience, as well as government observers.
  
  

1. The Need for the Canada Disability Benefit is Evident and Urgent

March of Dimes Canada has closely followed the progress on the Canada Disability Benefit Act, an act that we, in solidarity with disability community stakeholders, firmly endorse and are confident will significantly improve the financial security and consequently, dignity and enhanced quality of life for working age people with disabilities living in poverty in Canada. It is clear the Canada Disability Benefit is urgently needed to lift many working age people with disabilities out of extreme poverty.

Working age people with disabilities are the only group of people with disabilities in Canada not currently receiving federal direct financial support. However, they face unique challenges and substantial financial security barriers including a lack of access to safe, affordable and accessible housing, unaffordable assistive devices, and the rising costs of the necessities of life while existing federal, provincial and territorial income support levels have not kept pace with the cost of living.

We recognize that the legislative and regulations development processes take time, and it is crucial that both be done right; nevertheless, we believe that the Canada Disability Benefit must take effect as quickly as possible, while still leaving sufficient time to design and implement the benefit in an informed and accessible way.

During our focus groups in June 2022, we asked participants what they would do if they had more money. Common and reoccurring answers were living with dignity, having freedom of choice, gaining more independence, being able to afford required assistive devices, or service animals, pursuing education, pursuing relationships, and accessing housing and better food. Too many people with disabilities are living with constant uncertainty and financial insecurity. We are confident that Bill C-22 has the potential to significantly improve the lives of so many and to lift them out of precarious living situations.

Recommendation: March of Dimes Canada recommends that Bill C-22 pass as quickly as possible, and that the Committee consider an amendment in section 11(1) to require government to pass regulations to establish and administer the benefit to working age persons with disabilities within a timeframe no longer than 12-months on matters addressing eligibility, indexation to inflation, accessibility of the benefit, appeal processes, and other critical matters.

2. Accessibility Standards for the Canada Disability Benefit Must be World Class

As a service provider, March of Dimes Canada has seven decades of experience in supporting people with disabilities to access government programs, services and benefits, and in developing program accessibility standards to meet the needs of the diverse community we serve. Using this knowledge and experience, we are focused on collaborating with the federal public service, stakeholder partners and people with lived experience to co-create guiding principles for the Canada Disability Benefit’s application and user interface processes (see ‘A’).

The need for world class accessibility standards has been echoed by the people and communities we have heard from in multiple fora. In focus groups, we heard that barriers to accessing federal, provincial and territorial government income supports include lengthy and exhausting journeys to apply for benefits, unaffordable fees and gatekeeping behaviours by medical professionals obligated to provide required documentation, specific barriers for Indigenous communities to access resources, and a lack of information sharing and inefficient communication processes within government often leading to people with disabilities having to repeat their story multiple times.

Recommendation: March of Dimes Canada recommends that the Canada Disability Benefit application and administrative processes are designed according to person-centered accessibility standards and co-creation principles (listed below in section ‘A’). These principles emphasize meeting the accessibility needs of those the benefit will serve, and the importance of reaching all who are eligible, including people with disabilities in hard-to-reach communities.

A. Application Processes for the Canada Disability Benefit Must be Simple and Fully Accessible

March of Dimes Canada is committed to upholding the rights of people with disabilities in Canada to access government programs, services and benefits in ways that fully accommodate their needs. We are equally dedicated as a stakeholder to informing what this accessibility model will look like through ongoing research. The following guiding principles were developed in a co-creation session hosted by March of Dimes Canada and Prosper Canada:

• Place emphasis on the hardest to reach, by creating a user-centered process (beginning to end) and recognizing diversity of experiences. The process should be designed to dismantle barriers experienced by those who face the greatest obstacles to access. Establishing a definition of who are the hardest to reach will be essential.
• Collaborate to reduce burdens, by using the information already available about applicants and proactively collaborating within and between governments and non-government agencies to reduce the burden on applicants (while still ensuring privacy standards). This includes embedding a proactive obligation to assist in the model.
• Enable trust, by intentionally and proactively taking steps to build understanding and trust between recipients and government. Acknowledging that trust is often built between people rather than systems, this underscores the need for dedicated staff who are equipped and well-informed to handle inquiries from persons living with disabilities and/or their caregivers.
• Facilitate benefit access, by expanding the designated professionals that can determine disability status for the benefit and offering them training as needed. Create a public list of certified professionals that can help applicants and will not charge fees for form filling.
  
  

B. Resource Processes Must Respect that People with Disabilities Will Seek Out Help in Different Ways

The first point of contact will make a crucial difference in the applicant’s accessibility experience. When asked about their experiences with existing benefit processes, a focus group participant felt that the application process is set up to discourage people from applying and getting benefits and stated this cannot happen with the Canada Disability Benefit or it would not serve any purpose.

The department administering the benefit should include specially trained staff who are knowledgeable about disability income supports across Canada, equipped to ask appropriate questions, and can provide suitable resources or referrals. For example, they should be able to provide further information in an accessible and compassionate way, such as options for application support, nearby programs and services, and information about other benefits the applicant may qualify for.

We know that while establishing connections to resources can be life-changing; people do not always know what questions to ask or where to go. Regardless of the point of contact, government and community agencies must work collaboratively to ensure representatives are knowledgeable, compassionate, and equipped to help the person proceed with clarity and certainty.

C. Recipients of Existing Federal/Provincial/Territorial Disability Income Support Must Not be Required to Re-Prove Disability Status

To ensure the Canada Disability Benefit is easily and widely accessible, applicants must be automatically assessed for the federal benefit if they are active recipients of any existing federal/provincial/territorial disability benefits. Simplifying the application process wherever possible is a fundamental component to lifting many people living with disabilities out of serious poverty.

We recognize that this requires substantial collaboration between federal, provincial, and territorial governments. Nevertheless, information-sharing agreements will significantly improve the uptake and accessibility of the benefit. By automating the process for these individuals, many of those eligible will receive the benefit immediately upon implementation.

3. The Eligibility Regulation Must be Designed to Ensure Income Testing for the Canada Disability Benefit is Individually Based

We asked focus group participants about the most important things to consider when designing the benefit. Some participants expressed they do not receive benefits because living with a partner disqualifies them, thus relying on their partner to cover the cost of the necessities of life. Others shared knowing many people who are staying in toxic relationships or family situations simply because they do not have their own money to leave. Further challenges arise when spouses are required to provide financial statements (e.g., AISH in Alberta “looks at the income and assets you and your spouse or partner have.” ). In some cases, spouses or partners refuse to share such information, causing uncertainty and financial instability.

An individualized Canada Disability Benefit is a fundamental requirement to uphold a person’s right to dignity and quality of life. Regulations regarding eligibility must be reasonably income-tested on individual income rather than family or household income, up to a designated ceiling. We recognize this may imply that eligibility criteria for the Canada Disability Benefit would be different than those of provincial or territorial disability benefits, which are typically family income-based. However, given the importance of providing agency and independence for people with disabilities, individual income testing is fundamental for the benefit.

Recommendation: March of Dimes Canada recommends that in regulations concerning eligibility for the Canada Disability Benefit, income testing must be based on individual income, not family or household income.

4. The Canada Disability Benefit Must be a Non-Taxable, Direct Income Supplement

There is a complex web of direct and indirect income and social support programs at all three levels of government in Canada. These programs all have varying eligibility criteria and each impacts the other when it comes to income-testing for fundamental programs such as direct income support, affordable and accessible housing, child care subsidies, transportation, education, employment and training, and access to nutritious food. The Canada Disability Benefit has the potential to unintentionally disrupt this precarious balance and force people with disabilities to encounter additional barriers in accessing federal, provincial/territorial and municipal income and social support programs.

Recommendation: March of Dimes Canada recommends that to avoid downstream impacts, the federal government should define the Canada Disability Benefit as non-taxable income, under the same principle as the Canada Child Benefit, the Canada Workers Benefit, and other refundable federal benefits. Further, the benefit must supplement existing direct federal/provincial/territorial income supports for people with disabilities to guarantee a monthly income  that is no less than a designated amount according to federal poverty reduction legislation and principles.

5. Do Not Penalize Work and Ensure a High Employment Earnings Exemption

As an employment services provider, March of Dimes Canada deeply understands the dignity and satisfaction that comes with employment for people with disabilities who are able to work. However, people with disabilities face significant barriers to employment which include balancing employment income with maintaining eligibility for government supports, experiencing periods where they are unable to work due to health reasons, and challenges in entering or returning to the workforce.

Maintaining eligibility for existing federal, provincial and territorial disability income support programs and associated extended health, dental and vision care benefits is essential for people with disabilities. Those who are able to work must walk a fine line between pursuing employment ambitions and ensuring earned income does not exceed punitive employment earnings limits embedded in every publicly-funded income support program. These earned income limits result in people how working as much as they could or would like to, thus remaining in low-income circumstances in a vicious poverty cycle. Generous employment income thresholds and incentivizing work enables people with disabilities who can work to improve their quality of life – and that of their families – in many ways.

Recommendation: March of Dimes Canada recommends that the Canada Disability Benefit design incentivizes employment for those able to work through a high employment income exemption before affecting benefits received.

Summary of Recommendations

1. The need for the Canada Disability Benefit is evident and urgent. Pass Bill C-22 as quickly as possible and consider an amendment in section 11(1) to require government to pass regulations to establish and administer the benefit to persons with disabilities within a timeframe no longer than 12 months after the legislation is passed and proclaimed on matters addressing eligibility, indexation to inflation, accessibility of the benefit, appeal processes, and other critical matters.
2. Accessibility Standards for the Canada Disability Benefit must be world class. Design the application and administrative processes in accordance with co-creation principles as noted. These principles emphasize meeting the accessibility needs of those the benefit will serve, and the importance of reaching all who are eligible, including people with disabilities in hard-to-reach communities. It is also essential to acknowledge that people with disabilities will seek out help in different ways, and to establish efficient information-sharing and communication processes within and between each level of government in Canada and non-governmental agencies/organizations.
3. Eligibility regulation must ensure income testing of the Canada Disability Benefit is appropriately based on the individual income, not family income. This is essential to uphold a person’s right to dignity, independence, and quality of life.
4. The Canada Disability Benefit must be a non-taxable, direct income supplement, under the same principles as the Canada Child Benefit, the Canada Workers Benefit, and other refundable federal benefits. The benefit must supplement existing direct income supports, and it is recommended that the monthly amount of the Canada Disability Benefit be no less than a designated amount in accordance with federal poverty reduction legislation, policy and principles.
   
5. Do not penalize work and ensure a high employment income exemption. This will in turn incentivize employment for people with disabilities who can work.